SPOKANE, Wash. -- Returning to play on the road, the USF Dons women's basketball team (12-4, 2-2) battled hard and kept the game close throughout before eventually falling short to the #20 Gonzaga Bulldogs (15-2, 5-0) on Thursday night at the McCarthey Athletic Center. 

It was tightly contested ballgame throughout featuring a pair of the top programs in the WCC, with both team's defenses shining after each side had strong offensive starts to the game. Leading the way for USF was 12 points and five assists from Ioanna Krimili, while Jessica McDowell-White was able to put in 11 points and grabbed five rebounds of her own in Spokane. 

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

• The two highest scoring offenses in the WCC got off to a furious start in Spokane on Thursday as with all five USF starters contributing buckets capped off by a Kennedy Dickie baseline jumper that gave the Dons an 11-7 advantage. Jessica McDowell-White was looking to score early for USF in the first quarter as she totaled five points leading the USF offense as both defenses held the other side scoreless in the final three minutes of the quarter as the Dons held a 14-11 lead. 
• USF came out looking to score to begin the second quarter as they produced a 7-0 run that was capped off with a Loren Christie three-point make that gave the Dons a 21-14 lead and forced the Bulldogs into a timeout. Gonzaga was able to regroup in the later stages of the quarter as both teams headed into halftime even at 25 apiece.
• Both teams traded buckets coming out of halftime as McDowell-White knocked down her second three-point shot of the game and Abby Rathbun scored on a turn around shot in the paint that put the Dons up 31-28 in the early portions of the quarter. The Bulldogs were able to rebound and build a four point lead before a Krimili bucket and a Kennedy Dickie free throws as Gonzaga held a 43-40 lead heading into the final quarter.
• Gonzaga went on to control the majority of the fourth quarter as they held off a few comeback attempts from USF as the Bulldogs built a double digit lead but it was cut back down to eight following a made Krimili jumper. The 20th ranked Bulldogs were able to come away with a 63-52 victory on their home floor over the Dons with a strong fourth quarter. 

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

• Krimili led the way for the Dons as she did a nice job of finding her open teammates when double teams came as she scored 12 points to go along with five rebounds and assists against Gonzaga.
• McDowell-White had a great scoring performance on Thursday as she shot 4-of-7 from the field to go along with a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc as she scored 11 points to go along with five rebounds and a pair of assists.
• Coming off the bench, Amalie Langer did a great job on defense against the talented Gonzaga back court as she also scored seven points to go along with a pair of rebounds and a steal for the Dons. 

POST GAME WITH THE DONS:

• USF head women's basketball coach Molly Goodenbour: "I'm proud of our effort tonight. Gonzaga is a tough team to beat especially on their home court but we battled until the end. Nothing to do now but regroup and get ready to face another excellent opponent in Portland." 
• To view our post game press conference with associate women's basketball coach Janell Jones, please click here. 

UP NEXT:
The Dons will now wrap up their swing through the Pacific Northwest with a Saturday evening matchup against the Portland Pilots (10-5, 4-0) at 5:00 p.m. from the Chiles Center. USF split their pair of meetings last season with the home team coming out victorious in both meetings with Krimili pouring in a career-high 38 points at War Memorial last 

TICKETS AND MERCHANDISE:
Single-game tickets for West Coast Conference basketball games are currently on sale at www.usfdons.com/tickets. 

Want to dress like the Dons? Rep USF today by visiting the all-new USF Dons online store at www.usfdons.com/shop.

FOLLOW US:
For updates and more information on the USF women's basketball program, follow the Dons @USFDonsWBB on Twitter, @USFDonsWBB on Instagram and @USFDonsWBB on Facebook.

SPONSOR THE DONS:
The University of San Francisco Athletics Department would like to acknowledge and thank our primary sponsor - Provident Credit Union - for their continued support of USF Athletics. Interested in sponsoring the Dons? Please contact Frank Allocco, the Executive Senior Associate Athletics Director of External Relations, at fallocco@usfca.edu or at (415) 422-4561.