NORTON, Mass. - The Wheaton College (Mass.) women's basketball team rallied behind senior guard Kennis Jasperson's (Sacramento, Calif.) 14 points and four three pointers, but were unable to complete the comeback against visiting Suffolk University on Saturday afternoon in Emerson Gym, ultimately falling to the Rams 54-49.

The loss puts Wheaton at 2-3 on the season, while the Suffolk improves to 6-0 on the season with its sixth straight win to open its campaign.

Jasperson led her side with 14 points, including four three-pointers. Senior guard Kiki Walters (Fleetwood, Pa.) was just behind her teammate, scoring 12 points and collecting five rebounds and two steals. Senior forward Regan Keyter (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) was dominant on the glass, collecting 12 rebounds to lead the floor, adding seven points and three assists to complete a solid outing.

The Rams hit the ground running after the opening tip-off, jumping ahead to a 5-0 lead in no time. Junior Cheyenne Colbert (Brookline, N.H.) scored the first points of the game for Wheaton, but it took nearly five minutes before the Lyons scored again. In that time, the Rams opened a 12-4 lead. A Suffolk three-pointer pushed it ahead even further before sophomore guard Daniella MacDonald (xx) stopped the bleeding with a three-pointer of her own to make it 17-7. Keyter knocked down the final points of the quarter for the Lyons to help cut into the lead, making it 17-9 for the Rams after the first frame. 

Suffolk carried its momentum into the second quarter. The Rams opened the frame with a 7-0 run before junior guard Mary Claire McClintock (Essex Mountain, Vt.) knocked down a three to keep Wheaton within touching distance. Each team exchanged points, going blow for blow as Jasperson and Walters did their best to keep the Rams at bay. Jasperson drilled her second three-pointer of the quarter to put the Lyons within six points of the Rams. Colbert sank both of her free-throws at the end of the quarter to keep her team within seven points of the leading Rams at halftime. 

The Lyons left the locker room with a second wind behind them. Their ball movement was sharper than in any of the preceding minutes, and soon they had cut their deficit to five points after a Walters' field goal. Keyter built off of a defensive stop with a tip-in layup, and first year Katelyn Cadmus (Pawcatuck, Conn.) seized a fantastic opportunity to score her first collegiate points, knocking down a layup in the paint to put her team within one point. The Rams scored to answer, but McClintock scored again to keep the Lyons within one. Wheaton received a few good lucks, but was repelled by the rim as the Rams jumped ahead to a 42-32 lead. Neither team scored for over two minutes before Walters hit a fast-break layup at the end of the quarter to make it 42-34. 

With cracks showing in the Suffolk defense, the Lyons pressed onward in the fourth quarter. Walters quickly put up four points for Wheaton before Jasperson drained a three to make it 44-41 for the Rams. Suffolk missed their next shot, giving the Lyons a chance to tie the game. They rested that chance in the hands of Keyter, who scored her first three-pointer of the night to tie the game. Suffolk answered with a three of its own, but the Lyons charged back down the court and found Jasperson wide open in the corner. A picture perfect catch-and-shoot tied the game once more with three and a half minutes to play. The game stayed tied after Colbert hit both her free throws, making it 49-49. The Rams, however, scored twice before the buzzer and the Lyons fell just short after 40 minutes, dropping the game 54-49. 

Wheaton will hit the road after playing in its final home game of 2025 as it gets set to take on Johnson & Wales University on Tuesday, November 25 at 5:00 p.m. in Providence, R.I. The Rams will close out the November part of their schedule with a home game versus Lasell University on Tuesday at 6:00 pm.