WASHINGTON, D.C. – Despite a 20-point performance by Yamirelis Matos (Springfield, MA/Chicopee), the Wilkes women's basketball team were defeated by Landmark opponent Catholic University by a score of 78-49 on Saturday afternoon at the Franny Murray Court.
 
The loss dropped the Colonels to 4-2 overall and 0-2 to begin conference play. The Cardinals - who received votes in the latest D3hoops.com poll - advanced to 7-0 on the season. They are 2-0 in Landmark competition.
 
Wilkes jumped out to an early 7-0 lead thanks to a three-pointer and pair of free throws by Matos along with a Julia Marino (Washington Township, NJ/Washington Township) jumper. After a long stretch of back-and-forth play, the Cardinals fought their way back into the game and claimed their first lead of the game 10-9 with 4:35 remaining in the first quarter.
 
Catholic would hold the Colonel offense at bay for the remainder of the quarter and ultimately put together a 14-point run to finish the first frame.
 
Wilkes would cut the deficit to five points behind an 8-2 scoring run in the second quarter. Madison Robel (Middlesex, NJ/Middlesex) accounted for half of the Colonels' points during that stretch as she hit two free throws and completed a layup bucket in the paint.
 
Catholic reclaimed momentum in the latter stage of the second quarter with back-to-back shots from behind the arc to open up their lead. The Cardinals took a 36-21 lead into halftime.
 
Matos knocked down a trey ball to get the scoring started in the third quarter the same way she did in the first. She would go on to catch fire in the third, recording 11 points in the quarter.
 
Both teams ramped up the scoring in the third quarter as the Colonels and Cardinals both hit game-high totals of 20 and 27 points respectively. After 30 minutes of play, Catholic led 63-41.
 
Despite a strong effort in the final ten minutes, Wilkes was outscored 15-8 and would ultimately drop their contest with Catholic by a score of 78-49.
 
Matos led the Colonel offense with 20 points, two offensive boards and two steals. The sophomore also went 9-14 at the line. Robel contributed nine points to the scoresheet and recorded five rebounds along with one block. Marino notched seven points and a team-high three assists.
 
Catholic's scoring was driven by Keegan Douglas, who dropped 17 points to remain at the top of the Landmark's leading scorers. The junior went a perfect 6-6 on free throws and added five steals to her impressive performance. Carly Mulvaney and Anna Scoblick each collected 11 points on the day.
 
The Colonels will hit the road once again on Monday, December 4 when they travel to Neumann University. Tip off against the Knights is slated for 6:00 p.m.