By Aren LeBrun, News Staff

Despite a career-best effort from senior center Jewel Tunstull, the Northeastern women’s basketball team fell to 1-2 in conference play on Sunday, suffering a 90-74 loss to league newcomer College of Charleston.

The game was another setback for Northeastern (7-9, 1-2 Colonial Athletic Association), which suffered its second straight loss as well as fifth double-digit defeat of the season.

“It has nothing to do with our opponents,” head coach Daynia La-Force said. “Right now we’re not playing well defensively. It’s not about who we play, it’s about what we’re doing.”

Tunstull, who led the Huskies with a career-high 25 points and 10 rebounds, was honored in a pregame ceremony for her 1,000th career point, which she scored on Dec. 21 against the University of Massachusetts. Tunstull joined elite company, becoming the 17th player in school history to eclipse that scoring mark.

“She’s just great for us,” La-Force said. “She worked to become a good basketball player. She’s proven that the more you work at your skills, the better you become. She’s our glue.”

Joining Tunstull in double figures were junior guard A’lece Mark (18) and sophomore forward Samantha DeFreese (14). DeFreese narrowly missed her third career double-double, pulling down nine rebounds. Junior guard and co-captain Amencie Mercier dropped six points and dished out as many assists, the latter being a team-high.

Senior guard Alyssa Frye led the way for Charleston (10-7, 3-1), scoring a game-high 34 points. Frye buried 10 three-pointers in the contest, which ties a CAA record. Senior guard Afreyea Tolbert and junior center Mikaela Hopkins recorded 18 points apiece for the Cougars.

Northeastern started strong out of the gate, posting an early 5-0 run. Charleston matched that, scoring five of their own. A pair of layups from Mark and Tunstull pushed the Huskies’ lead to four points.

The momentum quickly changed sides, though, as the Cougars went on a blistering 14-0 run to take a 10 point, 19-9 advantage over Northeastern. Sophomores Tiffany Montagne and Kazzidy Stewart each nailed a three-pointer to energize the Huskies. Charleston answered strongly with a 9-2 run to secure a 28-17 lead.

After trading baskets over the next couple of minutes, Frye began to heat up, knocking in three long balls in as many minutes which, along with a Tolbert layup, helped push Charleston’s halftime lead to 15 points.

The Cougars carried their momentum into the second half, extending their lead to 20 and maintaining a 16-point advantage over the following six minutes. A jumper from DeFreese sparked a brief offensive awakening for the Huskies, who went on a 9-2 run and cut the deficit to just nine points.

With just over five minutes remaining in the contest, Tunstull pulled Northeastern within single digits again with six straight points. Charleston answered this surge in a big way, delivering a game-sealing 13-4 run for a final score of 90-74.

“We need to focus on the fundamentals of everything that we do.” La-Force said. “When we try to take shortcuts, or we don’t do it effectively, we’re giving up wide open threes or layups.”

It was a sub-par performance from Northeastern on both sides of the court, hitting on just 39 percent of their shots from the floor, including 26 percent from 3-point range. Charleston’s offense ran smoothly, as they shot shot 59 percent from the floor, a staggering 68 percent from beyond the arc and 92 percent from the free-throw line.

Thursday’s home game against the University of Hofstra (6-10, 1-4 CAA) provides Northeastern, which currently sits at sixth place in the CAA, a chance to get back to .500 in conference play.

“We have got to do a better job of sticking with the gameplan, sticking with the principles, getting better and being able to play for 40 minutes.” La-Force said.

For the Huskies, a team picked third overall in a preseason CAA coaches poll, there is definitely a sense of urgency on the court and in the locker room.

“We need to beat [Hofstra,” Tunstull said after Wednesday’s practice. “That’s it. We have to win.”

The Huskies will be facing the Hofstra Pride on Thursday, Jan. 23 on Solomon Court. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.