WICHITA, Kan. - A fiery start from the floor set the tone for the Shockers against Central Michigan Wednesday night, but sloppy turnovers and poor shooting quickly dwindled away the lead for Wichita State, as they fell to the Chippewas, 58-49 at Charles Koch Arena.

The Shockers (2-4), were held to their second lowest point total of the young season. Leading the way for WSU were guards Haleigh Lankster and Jessica Diamond, as they put up 18 and 13, respectively. Jazimen Gordon led Wichita State with 12 boards.

Central Michigan's attack was led by Jessica Green, Niki DiGuilio and Crystal Bradford, who all hit double digits in scoring with 11 points apiece.  Bradford also added seven boards for the Chippewas.

Wichita State quickly jumped out to a 8-0 lead three minutes into the game, and led by 10 with over seven minutes left to play in the first half thanks to 50 percent shooting from the floor, but Central Michigan was able to fight back by holding Wichita State scoreless the final 7:55 of the half, taking a 32-26 lead at the break.

The Chippewas comeback effort was given a spark by Jalisa Olive, who hit two of her first three shots from behind the arc coming off the bench. Olive finished with nine points.

The start to the second half looked much like the start of the game, as the Shockers set the pace of play for the final 20 minutes by cutting the Central Michigan lead to four with 10 minutes to play.  Timely shots paired with quick hands on defense helped the Chippewas slowly pull away from Wichita State in final minutes, stretching the lead to a game-high 13 points. 

Central Michigan was able to clamp down on the Shocker shooters better in the second half of play with disciplined defense, as Wichita State shot just 35.5 percent.

Next up for Wichita State is a home contest against SMU on December 3^rd. Tip is set for 2:05 p.m.

-Wichita State-