James Madison women's basketball falls to Miami (OH) 59-52 in opener

James Madison women's basketball opened its season with a 59-52 loss at Miami (OH) on Monday night at Millett Hall in Oxford, Ohio. The Dukes fell to 0-1 on the road.

The RedHawks (1-0) jumped out to a 19-12 lead in the first quarter and never trailed for long. Miami (OH) had a largest lead of 12 points, while James Madison's biggest edge was 3. The teams traded the lead twice.

Turnovers hurt the Dukes

James Madison committed 26 turnovers to Miami (OH)'s 16, and the RedHawks turned them into 16 points. The Dukes had 13 points off turnovers. Miami (OH) also had 14 steals to JMU's 8.

Maddie Leach had seven of the Dukes' turnovers in 26 minutes and scored 6 points. Delilah Soltys, Bree Robinson and Zakiya Stephenson each had four.

Shooting and the boards

Both teams struggled from the field. James Madison shot 20-of-54 (37 percent) and went 4-of-19 from three-point range. Miami (OH) shot 19-of-56 (34 percent) and 5-of-18 from deep. The RedHawks made the difference at the line, going 16-of-26 to JMU's 8-of-13.

The Dukes outrebounded Miami (OH) 41-37, with 12 offensive boards, and the teams tied at 26 points in the paint.

Who stood out

Robinson led James Madison with 12 points, going 5-of-21 from the field and 2-of-9 on threes in 38 minutes. Stephenson added 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting in 17 minutes. Trinity Moore grabbed a team-high nine rebounds off the bench and scored 6 points. Kinley Lewis had 6 points, five rebounds and three steals, and Soltys scored 6 with seven boards.

Julianna LaMendola led all scorers for Miami (OH) with 24 points and nine rebounds. Addison Baxter scored 13 with five steals, and Núria Jurjo had four assists and four steals.

By quarter, James Madison scored 12, 13, 13 and 14 points.

Up next

James Madison returns home to host Central Connecticut on Thursday, Nov. 5, 2026, at 6:00 p.m. ET.