RedHawks Down James Madison 59-52 in Season Opener

Monday, November 2

Oxford, Ohio

7 p.m.

Miami University

1-0,0-0MAC

James Madison

0-1,0-0Sun Belt

Team	1	2	3	4	F
James Madison	12	13	13	14	52
Miami (OH)	19	12	15	13	59

11/2/2026 9:56:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

OXFORD, Ohio – The RedHawks fought their way past James Madison to open the season with a 59-52 victory Monday evening. Newcomer Julianna LaMendola tallied nine field goals and five free throws to score 24 of Miami's points and Addison Baxter recorded 13 points and five steals in her Miami debut. Miami moves to 1-0 with the win, while James Madison falls to 0-1.

How it Happened:

Field goals from Baxter and LaMendola set Miami on a 10-0 run to start the game as the RedHawks held the Dukes scoreless for the first four and a half minutes of play. Three free throws and a pair of buckets from LaMendola and Lucía Martínez López held the 10-point advantage for the RedHawks before James Madison hit their second triple of the game to cut the deficit to seven at the end of the first quarter.
JMU opened up the second quarter with a 10-0 run that included a three-pointer and an and-one basket to take a 22-19 lead. LaMendola grabbed a rebound and made a layup to stop the run before Martínez López drained Miami's first three of the game to reclaim a 24-22 advantage. Baxter broke the subsequent three-minute scoring drought with two layups and ended the half with a three to pull Miami ahead 31-25 at the break.
After the Dukes scored the first points of the third quarter, LaMendola hit a triple from the corner to stop the momentum. Amber Tretter recorded her first basket of the game minutes later and Brooke Zartman nailed a three to secure her first points and make it 39-31 in favor of the RedHawks. LaMendola answered a JMU basket by completing an and-one play and scored two more layups to build a 7-3 Miami run to end the quarter.
JMU made three quick buckets to pull back within two, 46-44 during the early minutes of the fourth quarter. Miami erased the run with a 6-0 stretch of their own to pull back ahead by eight. After nearly three minutes without a field goal from either team, the Dukes hit a triple to pull within seven and capitalized on a steal to make it a five-point game with just over a minute remaining. Tretter picked up a rebound on the Dukes' next possession to stop the run and Núria Jurjo and LaMendola each added a pair of free throws to put JMU out of reach and cap off a 59-52 win.

Game Notes:

Eight different RedHawks saw their first career action with the Red and White.
Freshman Brooke Zartman made the first triple of her career midway through the third quarter
LaMendola (24 points) is the first RedHawk to score 20-plus points in their debut since Ivy Wolf poured in 23 points back in Nov. 10, 2021.
Baxter recorded a career-high five steals and was one shy of her career-best with 13 points.
Miami has now won 15-straight home games after a perfect 14-0 season in 2025-26.

Up Next:
The RedHawks will travel to Cape Girardeau this Thursday, Nov. 5, for a midweek matchup against Southeast Missouri State. Tipoff is slated for 11 a.m.