LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The No. 9 seeded Gonzaga women's basketball battled against No. 1 seeded Louisville in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament, but came up just short, 68-59.
 
Three Zags scored in double figures, led by junior Kayleigh Truong for the second game in a row, with 14 points. Senior Melody Kempton was right behind her with 13 points as senior Cierra Walker also scored 10. Both Walker and Kempton recorded a team-high six rebounds.
 
"I love coaching our team, and I thought they really battled today," head coach Lisa Fortier said. "I think that's part of the reason why I love coaching them. They are just a bunch of fighters. Louisville did a great job of starting both halves, and then it just became too much for us to overcome, unfortunately."
 
In the first quarter, Gonzaga responded quickly after Louisville took a 14-0 lead. The Bulldogs went on their own 12-0 run to make it a two-point game. Both Kayleigh Truong and sophomore Yvonne Ejim led the run with four points apiece. Walker also grabbed a team-high four rebounds in the opening quarter.
 
Going into the second only down 18-14, the Zags kept the momentum up by going on a 9-0 run halfway through the quarter. Kayleigh Truong had a team-high six points as Kempton scored five herself.
 
At the half, the Zags were only down 36-32. The Bulldogs were outrebounding the Cardinals, 21-18, with four different GU players grabbing four boards. Gonzaga also had five steals and held Louisville to only a 39.5 shooting percentage.
 
During the third, Kempton led GU with four more points and two rebounds. The Zags also caused four turnovers and scored six points off those miscues.
 
In the final quarter, the Bulldogs scored 15 points with Walker making seven of those. She went 1-for-1 from beyond the arc and 4-for-4 from the charity stripe in her final minutes.
 
Overall, Gonzaga outrebounded the Cardinals, 40-31. The Bulldogs also scored 28 points in the paint and had 19 points come from off the bench.
 
Records: The Zags finish the season at 27-7, marking Fortier's seventh season with 20 or more wins.
 
Lisa Fortier on the seniors: "The group is varied. But they really came together. They encompass all the parts of being a Zag with all our leadership characteristics, and they gave everything they could to each other and to the team. I think they're grateful. The game, it didn't go how we had it planned, but they did go down fighting, and I think they're proud of that, and they had a great career at Gonzaga, and I think they're all happy for their time spent. I just told them that I love them, and they're leaving our program better than it was before they got there, that I'm thankful that I got to coach them, which are all very true."