KEARNEY, Neb. --- Washburn women's basketball team snapped a six-game win streak over Nebraska-Kearney on Thursday falling, 70-61, on the road to the Lopers (17-3, 9-3 MIAA) while slipping to 14-7 on the year and 6-6 in MIAA action.

Reagan Phelan finished with a team-high 15 points and four assists as she was 5 of 13 from the field and 5 for 5 from the line. Alexis McAfee netted 13 points with 5 for 10 shooting including 2 of 4 from behind the arc. Cara Donley chipped in with eight, while Axelle Bernard added seven points and pulled down a team-best eight rebounds. Taylor Blue also had four assists.

An otherwise decent first half saw the Ichabods convert 11 of 27 attempts for 40 percent shooting but were overshadowed by UNK's 57 percent mark as it made 15 of 26  and 4 of 10 from three-point distance. 

At the break, the Lopers lead 38-28, while McAfee and Phelan led the Ichabods with eight points each. 

Washburn trailed by as much as 15 in the second half as UNK used a 7-2 spurt to open the third period and take a 45-30 advantage. The Ichabods though cut the deficit to eight midway through the stanza as Phelan and McAfee led a 9-2 charge. After the Loper margin was reinflated to 11, Washburn closed the gap to six as a 5-1 run to end the third made it 54-47.

In the fourth, the Ichabods continued to pressure UNK as they caused four turnovers, three of which came during the final 6:33 of the game. The ball handling errors by the Lopers allowed Washburn to quickly cut an 11-point deficit to five with five minutes remaining as Bernard and Hunter Bentley hit consecutive three-pointers to make it 64-59. That however, was the closest WU got as UNK used back-to-back threes of its own to stave off a late Ichabod rally.

Washburn will look to nip its two-game skid on Saturday when it travels to Fort Hays State. Tip off from Gross Memorial Coliseum is slated for 2 pm.