By: Nikhil Jelaji ~Staff Writer~

The Xavier women’s basketball team came up short against the Butler Bulldogs Saturday evening in Cintas Center, losing 68-54.

The loss brings the Musketeers to 8-14 overall and 3-7 in the Big East. The Bulldogs improved to 10-11 overall and 5-5 in Big East play.

Sophomore forward Briana Glover and sophomore guard Aliyah Zantt combined for 26 points. Glover recorded a team-high 16 points and pulled down four rebounds. Zantt scored 10 points, which included two 3-pointers and four rebounds.

Senior guard Shatyra Hawkes added 13 points to the Musketeers’ effort as well as three rebounds and a team-high five assists.

Freshman forward Leah Schaefer almost achieved a double-double with eight points and nine rebounds.

The Bulldogs jumped out with a 8-3 early lead in the opening minutes. However, Xavier would not give up after being hit with an early deficit.

With a 10-2 run, Xavier cut the deficit to one with a 3-pointer from Hawkes with 7:43 to go in the half. Glover tied the game up with a 3-pointer of her own. The Musketeers could not hold their momentum and went into halftime with Butler leading 30-25.

The Bulldogs continued their surge in the start of the second half with a 16-3 run, resulting in an 18 point lead, the largest of the night.

The Musketeers were relentless, adding back-to-back 3-pointers to go on a 13-2 run, cutting the lead to eight points. Butler ran away with the victory, ending the game with a 6-0 run.

Xavier finished 19-63 from the field and 6-27 from the 3-point line. Butler outrebounded the Musketeers 47-39. Xavier also had 11 assists on 19 shots, muscling 11 second-chance points.

The Musketeers’ next game is against the DePaul Blue Demons at 7 p.m. tonight at Cintas Center