Marion, IN — Take away the first and last five minute stretches of Wednesday night’s game against third-ranked and Mid-Cenral Conference-leading Indiana Wesleyan University, and the Goshen College women’s basketball team was right there, with a chance to win it.

Unfortunately, knocking off a team that’s lost just two games all season — and none at home — takes a perfectly played game. The Leafs came close, but couldn’t pull off the monster upset in a 50-59 loss that left head coach Steve Wiktorowski optimistic.

“I was really happy with our effort,” Wiktorowski said. “We competed very well with one of the best teams in the country on their home floor for probably 37 of 40 minutes. Hopefully we can finish these last couple weeks of the season by continuing to show improvement in sustaining our confidence and offensive production for whole games.”

Wiktorowski’s team displayed some major grit early in Wednesday’s contest, withstanding a nine to nothing Wesleyan run to start the game in inauspicious fashion. Goshen (11-16, 3-9) turned the ball over five times and missed its only two shots from the field during that time frame, and it looked as if Wesleyan might run away with things early.

A powerful 13 to nothing Leafs’ run over the game’s next six minutes made it clear that the host Wildcats were in for a serious fight, as Wiktorowski’s team connected on five consecutive fieldgoals to take a 13-9 lead with 10:46 to play in the first half. It was an advantage the Leafs would hold onto for the majority of the period, as Goshen led by a 26-22 score with just 1:14 remaining before halftime. A pair of jumpers from Wesleyan tied the score at 26-26 just before the intermission, however, and the game looked to be shaping up as a classic similar to those of the 2003-2004 Goshen-Indiana Wesleyan rivalry.

“I was happy with the confidence we showed early after we were down 9-0,” Wiktorowski said. “We then began to compete really well, and were able to go in tied at the half.”

Despite four second-half three-pointers from Wesleyan’s Jennie Martin, Goshen continued to compete in the final stanza, again falling behind early but coming back. Three of Martin’s three-balls came in the second half’s initial six minutes, and the Leafs again trailed by nine, 28-37. A 12 to five Goshen run cut the Wesleyan lead to just 42-40 at the 9:01 mark, and again the game was tight. The Leafs would cut the Wildcats’ lead to two points on three more occasions, but would get no closer. A missed free throw and a pair of turnovers kept Wiktorowski’s team from either tying the game or taking a lead, and Wesleyan proved its national ranking in the waning moments: The team converted three of its last four shots from the floor, sealing the game in the process. Wesleyan led by as many as 10 points on three occasions in the game’s last two minutes, keeping Wiktorowski’s determined squad at a safe distance.

“The last couple minutes we had a few turnovers and lost track of (Wesleyan sophomore forward Liz) Howerth in the lane,” Wiktorowski said. “We defended and rebounded pretty well, and were able to get the ball inside for some good scoring opportunities. Martin hit four big threes in the second half which really broke our backs.”

On the night, Goshen (18 of 37, 48.6 percent) outshot Wesleyan (23 of 55, 41.8 percent) but couldn’t overcome its 22 turnovers to Wesleyan’s eight. The host Wildcats also used an eight for 31 effort from the three-point arc (25.8 percent) to offset a 12 of 16 Goshen effort from the free throw line (75 percent) to hold on to the win. Senior Erin McDugle led Goshen’s cause with 17 points on four of 10 shooting from the floor. Classmate Candice Williams tallied 13 points, while junior Jenn Rupp scored eight in 25 minutes of action. Freshman Kelsy McKee led a balanced effort on the boards, finishing with a team-high six rebounds. McDugle and Williams each collected five caroms.

“Our bench continues to provide us depth as Jennifer Rupp was superb, (freshman) Carly Feldman provided strong inside play and (junior) Ashley Woodlee and (freshman) Jess Buller were also very solid.”

Goshen will next host neighboring rival Bethel College on Saturday. Game time is set for 1 p.m. in the Roman Gingerich Center.