Redshirt Junior guard Julia Ayrault (40) celebrates a three-point shot during a matchup against Iowa, held at the Breslin Center on Jan. 18, 2023. The Spartans fell to the Hawkeyes in overtime, 84-81.
Frustration was the key word of the night for No.16 Michigan State women’s basketball.
MSU fell short 63-59, in a hard-fought battle against Oregon, Thursday night in the Breslin Center. This loss breaks the Spartans’ five-game winning streak and undefeated record at home.
"They did some things that bothered us, frustrating," head coach Robyn Fralick said. "I thought that the game was obviously lost in the first quarter with our start."
From the tip-off, the Spartans struggled to find their rhythm on both sides of the ball. Oregon controlled the entire first half outscoring MSU, 21-8 in the first quarter.
It was hard to keep the morale of the team high with such a slow start, but graduate guard/forward Julia Ayrault stepped up as co-captain to keep the confidence up.
"I thought the crowd really got into it, she’s (Ayrault) a sixth year," Fralick said. "I think she's been in a lot of situations like that. She got going too, which I thought helped our team."
Ayrault scored only three points in the first half, however, with her effort in the fourth quarter she led the team with 14 points and nine rebounds.
"I think I was pretty frustrated in the first half, and just kind of trying to take a deep breath and keep playing the game," Ayrault said. "Obviously missed some free throw down the stretch, which was super frustrating, and that can't happen, but just kind of staying levelheaded."
When the game seemed to be over, the Spartans began to look more like themselves with a powerful second half outscoring the Ducks 19-8 in the fourth quarter.
"I think that's kind of been our theme all year, we're going to fight until the very end," Ayrault said. "And I think, even when we're down, we're in the huddles and stuff. We're positive about the fact that we know we can come back."
The Spartans came back from double-digit deficits throughout the game and had the opportunity to take the lead, but even with the new energy, the Ducks’ lead was just too high.
Several players contributed to the Spartans fighting back on their home turf. Junior forward Grace Vanslooten tallied up 14 points and one steal against her former team, junior guard Theryn Hallock scored 12 points and three steals, and senior guard/forward Jocelyn Tate added six steals.
MSU women’s basketball is heading on the road to take on Northwestern Sunday, Feb. 2, with tip-off set for 2 p.m.
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