HOLLAND, Mich. -- Unable to overcome an early deficit, the Albion College women's basketball team fell to perennial power, Hope College, 86-58 on Saturday afternoon. It was the first game for Albion since Feb. 28, 2020.

Senior Rain Hinton and sophomore Da'Leshia Davis led the Britons with 16 points each. Davis added seven rebounds while freshman Daniah Beavers hauled in a team-high nine boards.

Hope closed out the final four minutes of the first quarter on an 11-2 run, pushing the hosts out to a 19-10 lead after one. Albion battled with the Flying Dutch in the second quarter after a pair of Rebecca Ross free throws cut the deficit to two points with five minutes before the break. Hope responded, stifling the Briton momentum by forcing the visitors into turnovers, building a 38-27 lead at halftime.

Albion could not cut the deficit back to single digits for the remainder of the game, as Hope pulled away late in the third quarter.

In their first game in almost a year, a young Albion squad struggled with a cold shooting day, connecting on just 29.5 percent of its field goals. The Britons saw many new faces on the court this afternoon, as four freshmen or transfers saw significant minutes.

Davis had an impressive first outing for Albion, adding three assists and a pair of steals to her stat line.

The Flying Dutch scored 31 points off 28 Albion turnovers. Hope's bench outscored Albion's, 43-6.

Albion opens the 2021 campaign at 0-1 while Hope improves to 2-0.

Hope was 29-0 a season ago before COVID-19 prematurely ended their postseason run. With the shortened schedule, this matchup does not count towards the MIAA standings. Albion will have four more contests before results are applied to the conference standings.

UP NEXT

Albion will have just over 48 hours to regroup, as the team is slated to travel to Alma on Monday night. Tip off against the Scots (1-1) is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. The schedule is subject to change, and as always, we will keep you updated on gobrits.com.