OMAHA, Neb. – The Caldwell College women's basketball team lost to the host Mavericks, 86-44 in the first game of the University of Nebraska-Omaha Thanksgiving Classic Saturday night at Sapp Fieldhouse. With the loss, the Cougars drop to 1-2 on the season, while the Mavericks, who made 10 three-pointers in the win, remain unbeaten at 4-0.

UNO scored the game's first seven points en route to a 16-2 run in the opening six minutes of the contest, eventually building a 27-8 advantage with 8:23 left in the half. The Cougars battled back with an 11-2 spree of their own, sparked by seven points from sophomore forward Mackenzie Lynch (Wayne, NJ/DePaul Catholic), to make the score 29-20 with 2:48 on the clock. But the Mavericks closed out the half with a 6-2 run to lead 35-21 at the break.

The second half started much like the first, with the Mavericks scoring seven straight points to launch a 26-6 run over the first 10 minutes to put the game away. UNO made three three-pointers in the first four minutes of the half to buoy the Mavericks' key run. The hosts shot 51.5 percent from the floor in the second half compared to 25.0 percent for the Cougars.

Lynch and senior forward Amy Gaudious (Long Branch, NJ/Long Branch) each scored nine points to lead the Cougars, with Lynch grabbing a team-best eight rebounds. Cayla Hargrove and Karen Thies each tallied 16 points to pace the Mavericks, who also received 15 points from Ashley Freerksen.

Caldwell finishes play at the UNO Thanksgiving Classic on Sunday, Nov. 26 against Minnesota State-Mankato, beginning at 2:00 p.m. Eastern time at Sapp Fieldhouse.