Creighton Women’s Basketball Drops 76-61 Road Game at DePaul

Creighton Women Stumble on the Road, Fall at DePaul

Creighton Women’s Basketball / David Butler II-Imagn Images

Creighton women’s basketball faced a challenging road environment on Sunday, January 25, as the Bluejays fell 76-61 to DePaul at Wintrust Arena. The result dropped Creighton to 8-12 overall and 4-7 in BIG EAST play. DePaul, on the other hand, earned its second conference win of the season, improving to 5-17 overall and 2-9 in league action.

Context Behind the Creighton Women’s Basketball Rematch

Entering the Sunday matchup, DePaul’s recent struggles were well-documented. Since the two teams first met on December 20, the Blue Demons had lost six of their last seven games. Still, DePaul’s defensive identity remained intact.

Final.#GoJays pic.twitter.com/1gu2HyS7Vd

— Creighton Women’s Basketball (@CreightonWBB) January 25, 2026

The Blue Demons allow just under 73 points per game and force more than 18 turnovers per contest, and that formula once again showed its impact against Creighton. Those forced mistakes turned into timely scoring runs that helped DePaul control the flow of the game.

Creighton opened the game with positive energy, finding an early rhythm behind freshman Neleigh Gessert, who knocked down a pair of three-pointers in the first quarter. Despite that strong start, ball security became an immediate concern. Five Bluejay turnovers in the opening period were converted into nine DePaul points, helping the Blue Demons take a 23-18 lead after one quarter.

The second quarter continued to swing in DePaul’s favor. Ava Zediker provided a spark for Creighton with six points on 3-of-5 shooting, but DePaul’s offense remained efficient. The Blue Demons shot 9-of-15 as a team in the period and steadily extended their lead, heading into halftime with a 44-31 advantage.

The most pivotal stretch of the game came late in the third quarter. Trailing 58-45 with 2:36 remaining in the period, Creighton found momentum behind its freshmen. Zediker and Kendall McGee combined for all nine points of a 9-0 run to close the quarter, repeatedly attacking the basket and cutting the deficit to 58-54.

The Blue Demons opened the final quarter with a decisive 10-2 run, quickly reasserting control. Over the final ten minutes, DePaul outscored Creighton 18-7, shutting down the comeback attempt and sealing the 76-61 result.

Individual Performances That Stood Out

Creighton led with 19 points. Meanwhile, senior Grace Boffeli delivered another strong interior performance with 12 points and 10 rebounds. That marked the 43rd double-double of her career. Gessert finished with 11 points, and Kennedy Townsend added 10 to round out the Bluejays’ double-figure scorers.

For DePaul, Kate Novik paced the offense with 17 points, while Devin Hagemann added 16. Their consistent scoring helped steady the Blue Demons whenever Creighton threatened to close the gap.

Sunday’s outcome stood in sharp contrast to the December 20 matchup in Omaha, where Creighton earned a 70-50 victory. In that game, DePaul led 25-12 midway through the second quarter but managed just 25 points over the final 25 minutes.

Creighton trailed 28-27 at halftime before taking the lead for good with the opening basket of the second half. Boffeli led the Bluejays with 17 points and 11 rebounds, while Allison Heathcock added 14 points and six boards. Novik paced DePaul with 11 points and nine rebounds.

Despite the loss, recent games have highlighted notable milestones for Creighton. That included Grace Boffeli’s 15-rebound performance against Xavier and a balanced scoring effort that saw six Bluejays reach double figures for the first time since February 2022. Creighton will now look to regroup and bounce back at home, returning to Omaha to host St John’s on Wednesday, January 28, with a 6:00 p.m. tip-off at D.J. Sokol Arena.

---

More From Creighton On SI

feed

---

Stay up to date with the BlueJays by bookmarking Creighton On SI and follow us on Twitter.