SPOKANE, Wash. - North Florida women's basketball (1-3) stuck around with West Coast Conference preseason favorite Gonzaga (3-1) for three quarters, but couldn't keep up the scoring, as the Ospreys fell to the Bulldogs in an 83-55 loss on Wednesday evening.

The Ospreys kept it a one-possession game through the first period after a 9-0 scoring run that was triggered with three consecutive makes from beyond the arc. They hung around with the Zags late in the third quarter, but didn't have enough in the tank on the road to pull off the upset.

GU 83, UNF 55

RECORDS

North Florida | 1-3
Gonzaga | 3-1

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

First Half: Jayla Adams started the action for the Ospreys with a jumper in the point to take an early lead...Lyric Swann kept the game tight with a three-pointer to stay within one...UNF erupted with a 9-0 scoring run late in the first period with three consecutive makes from downtown by Selma Eklund, Helena Rafnsdottir and Swann...Kaila Rougier began the second period with a three to stop a Gonzaga run and cut the deficit to four...Alexa Washington earned her first points with the shot clock expiring on a driving layup...UNF ended the first half on a high note with Eklund drawing the foul on an and-one bucket to go into the break down 42-34.

Second Half: Rougier kicked off the third period with a three-pointer to keep the Gonzaga lead at single digits...Sarah Taub forced a turnover and took it the other way on the next possession to make it a seven-point game...a driving layup from Adams and another three from Rafnsdottir were the final points of the period heading into the fourth down by 18...Elkund and Rafnsdottir both hit jumpers into the fourth period to add on to their totals...the Ospreys were able to put together a few more scores, but ultimately fell to the Bulldogs, 83-55.

LEADERS BY THE NUMBERS

UNF
Jayla Adams | 12 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals
Selma Eklund | 10 points, 2 rebounds
Helena Rafnsdottir | 9 points, 6 rebounds

GU
Kayleigh Truong | 21 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals
Yvonne Ejim | 20 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks
Maud Huijbens | 12 points, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks
Brynna Maxwell | 12 points

COACH'S THOUGHTS

"This was a challenging road test for us, both in terms of travel and playing a high-caliber opponent. Gonzaga is a storied program with a strong, veteran group this year. I was pleased with our team's three-point shooting tonight, but we didn't get the ball to the paint often enough and we gave up way too many fast-break points. We got careless with the ball down the stretch, which really slowed down our scoring. Gonzaga's length and depth had a lot to do with that."

NOTES

• UNF only had two double-digit scorers, but had three Ospreys with nine points.
• Swann knocked down three of the Ospreys' seven three-pointers in the first half.
• Adams' time on the floor was plentiful playing 18 of the 20 minutes in the first half, as well as 30 overall.
• Rafnsdottir had an all-round great performance with nine points and six rebounds.
• First time on the season scoring under 60 points in a game.
• UNF sent out the same starting lineup for back-to-back games.

UP NEXT

North Florida continues its road trek by returning to the Sunshine State to play against USF on Sunday, Nov. 19, at 2 p.m., in Tampa, Fla.