Central Connecticut women’s basketball team was bested by Sacred Heart in the team’s latest doubleheader series.

More importantly for the Blue Devils’ future, senior Emma McCamus suffered an ankle injury during the fourth quarter of the first game.

McCamus is the Central Connecticut’s second leading score, contributing 14 points per game. Her return to the lineup is questionable after she missed out on the second game of the doubleheader.

McCamus’ absence comes at an inopportune time for the Blue Devils, who are also without senior Ashley Berube after she suffered a knee injury prior to the second half of the season. Berube was the team’s leading scorer this season.

On top of this, senior Tiffany Slicklein has not played since a December 15 game against St. Francis Brooklyn due to injury.

The Blue Devils offense could not get things going offensively in game one. The team was able to keep things close in the first quarter, but the second quarter brought with it some serious shooting slumps for CCSU.

In the second quarter, the team was only able to knock down two of the 13 shots they attempted and missed out on all five of the three’s that they took. Central Connecticut’s defense was able to keep them in the game still, forcing the Pioneers to shoot a measly 20 percent from the floor in the second.

While the “bend don’t break” mentality worked in the first half, the Pioneers caught fire in the second half.

Sacred Heart shot 48.5 percent from the floor through the second half. The Blue Devils never found their offensive spark, shooting just 24.4 percent.

Senior Ashley Forker led the Blue Devils in points, rebounds and steals for the game.

During the fourth quarter, McCamus could be seen on the sidelines getting work done by the physical training staff. Despite any pain she had been feeling, she still cheered on her teammates until the final buzzer sounded.

The second game of the week’s doubleheader was a home game for CCSU against their in-state rivals.

The Blue Devils came out of the gate cold and could not battle back for the lead in this one, though their performance in the second half was far improved from the first.

After some rough shooting in the first half, Central Connecticut came out with aggressiveness to open up the second.

Junior guard Forever Toppin scored 10 points in the third quarter as the team shot 50 percent from the floor and 40 percent from deep, both game highs for a quarter.

The team trailed by just four points heading into the final frame, but the comeback unfortunately was halted there.

The Pioneers’ defense stifled CCSU in the final quarter, forcing the Blue Devils into some difficult shots that resulted in a shooting percentage of just 23.5 percent. The three ball was not hitting at the same consistency either, as the team missed all seven of their attempts in the fourth.

Toppin set a personal best in scoring against the Pioneers as she took on some of McCamus’ load. The New Jersey basketball product dropped 17 points against Sacred Heart in the second game on some very efficient 6-for-11 shooting.

The Blue Devils will next be back in action against in a series against Bryant on February 9 and 10. These games were scheduled for earlier in the month, but Bryant’s program was shut down following positive tests.