The University of Regina's women's basketball team suffered a 71-68 loss to the Mount Royal Cougars on Friday afternoon in a Canada West game at Kenyon Court in Calgary.
 
Despite having only seven available players after Faith Reid was injured in Thursday's win and Macaela Crone went down in the second quarter on Friday, Regina was able to claw back from a deficit that had ballooned to 11 at one point in the third quarter.
 
The U of R's 11-3 run was capped by a pair of Alexi Rowden free throws that tied up the game at 64-64, but Mount Royal responded with buckets on both of the next two possessions and then a pair of free throws from the game's leading scorer, Abbey Gillette.
 
Gillette continued to sink free throws down the stretch, finishing 5-of-8 from the line with her game-high 20 points. Maddison Hooper chipped in with 13 points on three triples as MRU moves to 2-2.
 
Emily Dewey led the Cougars with 19 points and nine rebounds, including 9-for-14 from the charity stripe. Michaela Kleisinger scored in double figures for the third time in four games, adding 12 points to go with six boards and three assists. Madeleine Tell had a solid game in her first start as a Cougar, scoring eight points including two threes, and snagging seven rebounds.
 
The Cougars held a big advantage on the boards in Friday's contest, grabbing 42 rebounds to MRU's 31. Regina also shot 30 free throws compared to the home team's 13, but could only cash in on 18 of those attempts.
 
The Cougars (1-3) will be back at the CKHS next weekend with Friday and Saturday contests against the Winnipeg Wesmen. Winnipeg held a 2-0 record heading into this weekend, which will see them visit the Alberta Pandas.