CEDARVILLE, Ohio - After coming up short in their season debut last weekend, the Salem Tigers' women's basketball program headed over to south central Ohio this evening to take on the Cedarville Yellow Jackets. Salem had a tight game on their hands, but the Yellow Jackets were able to pull away in the second half to send Salem home with a 75-58 loss. 

In the first quarter, Salem opened up with a tough defensive battle that saw neither team truly take control of the game. Salem ran their offense through the interior play of Liliani Krause to build up a slim lead, but the Yellow Jackets made a run of their own late in the period. Therefore, we had a close 12-12 ball game after one. 

In the second quarter, Salem had a tough time getting the offense going. Cedarville exploited the sluggish start for the Tigers, and jumped out to a 33-22 lead going into the halftime break.

After the intermission, Salem went back to the well on the interior. Krause and Carmen Vasquez controlled the paint for the Tigers, and Kori Pillette and Carine Pinkney nailed some big outside shots for Salem. However, Salem's improved offensive output was not quite enough to dig into the Cedarville advantage, and the contest went into the final frame with a 53-39 scoreline.

In the fourth, Salem had a big deficit to push through. They made some strides behind improved play from Cassandra Smith and Kamryn Ruffin. Unfortunately, Salem was not able to outpace the Yellow Jackets, and ultimately fell by a final score of 75-58. 

Statistically, Carine Pinkey led Salem in scoring with 16 points. Liliani Krause finished just behind her with 14 points, and Cassandra Smith rounded out the Tigers in double figures with 13 points. 

Despite the loss, Salem will have ample opportunity to get back on track this week when they host Slippery Rock at home on Saturday, November 16th at 2 PM in T. Edward Davis Gymnasium.