LOUISVILLE, Ky. - North Florida women's basketball (5-11, 2-4 ASUN) put together a great first half performance, but fell short in its first of two road games this weekend against Bellarmine (6-13, 2-4 ASUN), 65-59, on Thursday evening.

Kaila Rougier was the offensive leader for UNF with a career-high 23 points against the Knights, which was eight more points than her previous best total. She also notched six rebounds and five assists in her career performance.

The Ospreys had the advantage in the first half, as they built as high of a lead as 16 points midway through the second period. They weren't able to find shots to fall in the back half of the game and faltered by six in a close conference matchup on the road.

Bellarmine 65, UNF 59

RECORDS

North Florida | 5-11 (2-4 ASUN)
Bellarmine | 6-13 (2-4 ASUN)

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

First Half: Rougier drew first blood with a trey ball to take an early 3-0 lead...Emma Broermann continued the early scoring run with a fast-break layup to expand the lead to 10-4...the Ospreys up together eight straight points to close the first period capped off by a three from Maddie Millar...Millar made another three early in the second to give UNF a 14-point lead...just moments later, Elysa Wesolek hit a shot just before the shot clock expired to add another make from beyond the arc...two more points from the free throw line took the Ospreys into the break with a 28-23 lead.

Second Half: Wesolek made the first field goal coming out of the break to keep the lead for the Ospreys...Bellarmine went on an 8-0 run afterwards to take the lead, but Rougier took it right back with an and-one bucket...Rougier made another score near the end of the third period to keep UNF with three through three...UNF had a slow start to start the fourth with Bellarmine going on an 11-2 run, but Wesolek and Broermann hit back-to-back baskets...a three-pointer from Maddie Millar made it a six-point game with just under three minutes left...Millar made another three with under a minute left, but it wasn't enough to stay within reach of the Knights in a 65-59 loss on the road.

LEADERS BY THE NUMBERS

UNF
Kaila Rougier | 23 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists
Elysa Wesolek | 9 points, 10 rebounds
Emma Broermann | 10 points, 4 rebounds
Maddie Millar | 12 points

BELL
Gracie Merkle | 21 points, 12 rebounds, 2 blocks
Jayla Butler | 11 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 steals
Sheniqua Coatney | 10 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks

COACH'S THOUGHTS

"This was a tough one! I thought we battled, but didn't make enough plays when it's was all said and done. We had too many mental lapses in key moments and they took advantage of every one of them. We did a lot of good things tonight, but have to find a level of consistency that will allow us to pull games like this out."
-- head coach Darrick Gibbs

NOTES

• Rougier recorded over 10 points, five rebounds, and five assists for the fourth time this season.
• The Savannah, Ga., native attempted the most field goals in her career with 20 shots put up, as well as recorded her sixth consecutive game with at least 10 attempts.
• She also racked up 38 minutes, which is also a career mark for the sophomore.
• Wesolek was one point shy of her first career double-double, as she recorded a career-high 10 rebounds.
• She also played the most minutes of her career with 37 minutes played on the floor against the Knights.
• Rafnsdottir joins Wesolek with career-highs in rebounds (10) and minutes played (36).
• Millar and Broermann both scored in the double-digits with Millar hitting four three-pointers and Broermann going 4-for-7 from the field.
• Millar attempted the most threes as an Osprey with nine on Thursday evening, while also joining Rougier, Wesolek and Rafnsdottir in career minutes played (34).
• UNF held the rebounding margin with 43 boards compared to Bellarmine's 36 total.
• Held Bellarmine to single digits until the 6:48 mark of the second quarter.
• Used same starting lineup for third consecutive game.
• Played with seven again with Selma Eklund returning, but Jaelyn Swann missing Thursday's game.

UP NEXT

UNF returns to action on Saturday afternoon when the travel to Eastern Kentucky on Saturday, Jan. 21, at 2 p.m.