Florida Atlantic women’s basketball fell to Middle Tennessee 71-59 Saturday night in Boca Raton, ending its season with 19 consecutive losses. The Owls have not won a game since defeating Jacksonville State 58-57 on Dec. 18, 2016.

FAU (4-15, 0-18 Conference USA) held an 11 point lead after the first quarter, but were outscored 64-41 in the ensuing three quarters. The Owls shot just 35 percent from the field and committed 21 turnovers.

Freshman Alexis Shannon led the Owls with 14 points, followed by freshman Julia Jenike’s 13.

The Owls’ defense was excellent in the first quarter, holding Middle Tennessee to just seven points on 1-of-7 field goals. Their defense allowed FAU to jump out to an 18-7 lead after the first, with the team knocking down four 3-pointers in the quarter.

However, in the second quarter Blue Raiders senior Ty Petty and sophomore Alex Johnson combined for 18 points. The duo alone outscored FAU in the quarter, as the Owls scored just 16 points in the period.

Johnson and Petty each scored 13 points in the first half, helping Middle Tennessee to a 35-34 lead heading into halftime. However, FAU held Johnson to two points in the second half.

Petty continued her assault on FAU in the third quarter, knocking down five of her eight shots en route to 14 points. The Owls themselves only scored 15 points in the period.

FAU came within three points of the Blue Raiders with 8:10 left in the game, but Middle Tennessee would finish the game on a 16-6 run. The Blue Raiders shot 50 percent from the field, and outscored the Owls 30-12 in the paint.

Petty finished with a career high 33 points on 10-for-18 shooting, including 5-for-8 from three-point land.

FAU will miss the Conference USA tournament for the first time since they switched from the Sun Belt Conference at the start of the 2013-14 season.

Hans Belot Jr. is the sports editor of the University Press. For information regarding this or other stories, email [email protected] or tweet him at @Don_Phenom_.