MEDFORD, MA- In a rematch of a 2008 NCAA Tournament first-round contest, the Wheaton College women's basketball team trailed nationally-ranked Tufts University by only four points with a little more than six minutes remaining before falling to the Jumbos, 79-71 on Tuesday evening in Cousens Gymnasium. The Lyons slipped to 9-7 in finishing a four-game road swing, while Tufts, which sits 11th in this week's D3hoops.com national poll, is now 12-1.

Junior Jenny Champney (Bedford, MA/Bedford) finished with a career-high 26 points while snagging nine rebounds. Wheaton trailed just 63-59 after senior Jennie Pleat (Nashua, NH/Nashua South) hit two free throws with 6:12 remaining but came no closer despite the visitors going 17-of-18 from the charity stripe in the second half while attempting to make up what had been a 15-point deficit early in the period.

Champney was instrumental on both ends of the floor in the opening half, finishing with 14 points and seven rebounds. Three straight Wheaton buckets made it 6-2 by the 18:34 mark, and Pleat's hoop off senior Krystin Hickey's (Manchester, NH/New Hampton School) offensive board and pass had the visitors on top, 10-7 at 16:55 before the Jumbos scored six straight points.

Hickey converted a Pleat dish during a 4-0 run that put Wheaton back ahead before Tufts tallied another six-point jaunt to go up 19-14 at 8:35. However, junior Stephanie Walker (Somers, CT/Somers) hit three freebies before freshman Gabbie DePalo (Rumson, NJ/Rumson-Fair Haven Regional) added a pair to knot the game, and Champney's three-point play gave the Lyons a 24-23 edge with 5:44 remaining.

From there, the Jumbos scored 10 straight points in a matter of 2:10 and finished the half on an 11-2 run, yielding only a pair of Champney free throws with 2:13 to go. The hosts held a 34-26 lead at the intermission, as Wheaton committed only six turnovers in the period but shot 26.7 percent.

In the second stanza, Champney's three-point play brought the visitors within five 1:36 into the period before Tufts employed a 14-4 run to grab its largest lead at 50-35 with 15:09 to play. The Jumbos led by double figures for the better part of a 9:42 span, but Pleat and junior Andrea Bailey (Needham, MA/Needham) had four points apiece during a late 8-0 run that drew the Lyons to within four at 6:12. However, Tufts went back up by as many as 12 points.

Beyond Champney, Hickey was the only other Lyon in double figures, as 10 of her 12 points came in the second stanza. She shot 6-of-7 from the charity stripe while pulling down eight rebounds and dishing out four assists. Pleat had eight points, senior Bri Smith (Westford, MA/Westford Academy) notched seven points and four assists, while Bailey finished with seven points, five rebounds and four steals. Wheaton ended up 27-of-31 on freebies.

Senior Katie Tausanovitch (Lyme, NH/Hanover) paced Tufts with 23 points and 12 rebounds, while junior Julia Baily (Farmington, CT/Miss Porter's School) also notched a double-double with 13 points and 10 boards. Senior Kim Moynihan (West Hartford, CT/Hall) added 17 points and eight caroms, while junior Casey Sullivan (Berlin, CT/Suffield Academy) totaled nine points and seven assists. Tufts shots 43.5 percent and held a 49-35 rebounding advantage.

Wheaton returns to action on Saturday when it hosts New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) foe Wellesley College at 1:00 p.m.