EVANSTON, ILL. – The University of Missouri-St. Louis women's basketball team closed out its exhibition slate on Sunday with a 59-40 loss at Northwestern University.
 
The Tritons now turn their attention to the regular season, which opens Friday at home at 5 p.m. against Davenport.
 
UMSL jumped out to a 6-0 lead behind three-pointers from junior Arielle Jackson and senior Sammie Sproul and played even with the Wildcats through the first 10 minutes with the first quarter ending in an 11-11 tie.
 
A 7-0 run by Northwestern early in the second half gave the hosts a 20-14 advantage with 6:34 remaining. The Wildcats later took their largest lead of the half at 32-22 and owned a 34-25 lead at the break before holding a 48-36 edge after three quarters.
 
Senior Jordan Fletcher led UMSL with 11 points and eight rebounds, while Sproul and freshman Alexa Chairs added eight points each. Sproul also dished out four assists.
 
The Tritons shot 29.4 percent, while Northwestern shot 35.4 percent and held a 49-37 rebounding advantage, including an 18-10 edge on the offensive end.