The Quinnipiac women’s basketball team fell to No. 12 Indiana 92-55 on Sunday.

The Bobcats got off to a good start in Bloomington, thanks to six early points from senior center Mikala Morris on 3/3 shooting.

Quinnipiac used its defensive play to put pressure on Indiana, leading to a 6-0 run by the Bobcats, and a 12-8 lead early on.

Freshman guard Yarden Garzon kept the Hoosiers in the game in the first quarter, knocking down all three of her three point attempts. Indiana only attempted eight threes when they came to Hamden last season, narrowly defeating the Bobcats 67-59, a game where Quinnipiac led for 30 minutes.

This time around, the Hoosiers put up eight threes in the first quarter, knocking down five of them.

Quinnipiac’s early advantage was short-lived, as Indiana sprinted out to a 12-0 run over the final four minutes of the first quarter to take a 27-12 lead at the end of one.

Quinnipiac’s turnover woes continued this afternoon. The Bobcats have turned the ball over 17.8 times per game this season. On Sunday, they turned the ball over 27 times.

The absence of graduate student guard and preseason All-MAAC First Teamer Mackenzie DeWees is a major reason for the turnover issues. Albeit a small four game sample size, Quinnipiac has never turned the ball over more than 15 times per game during DeWees’ time with the Bobcats.

It’s pretty hard to beat one of the top teams in the country when they’re hitting shots, and the Hoosiers shot 57% from the field in the first half as they took a 49-26 lead into the break.

Senior Forward Mackenzie Holmes powered the Indiana offense all afternoon with 22 points to go along with seven rebounds.

The Quinnipiac defense stepped up in the third quarter. The Bobcats mixed in zone and man defense between their two units to put together their best defensive quarter of the game.

However, the Bobcats defensive effort didn’t translate to the offensive end. Quinnipiac was held to just eleven third quarter points on 4/17 shooting as the Hoosiers widened their lead to 32.

Senior forward Cur’Tiera Haywood, the Bobcats’ best scorer this season, finally got her first field goal of the afternoon in the third. The Hoosier defense focused on Haywood’s ability to score from the perimeter, holding her to 1/7 shooting today and 0/2 from three.

Despite the deficit being too large to overcome, Quinnipiac displayed an impressive effort for most of the fourth quarter until a three-minute 15-2 run by the Hoosiers, pushing their lead to 38, ran the Bobcats out of the gym.

The Bobcats now turn their attention to the Christmas City Classic, which will be held in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania starting on Nov. 26. Quinnipiac will play Kent State in the opening game and then either Lehigh or Southern Illinois the following day.