TOLEDO, Ohio – Coming off a thrilling, come-from-behind win on Wednesday, the Toledo women's basketball team faces another stiff test on Sunday when it plays at Gonzaga. The Rockets and Bulldogs will tip off at 5:00 p.m. on ESPN+.

Sunday's game will be a battle between the third and fourth-ranked teams in the CollegeInsider Mid-Major Top 25, with Toledo (No. 3) ranking one spot ahead of Gonzaga (No. 4). Entering the season, the Rockets (58) were tied for sixth among all Division I women's basketball programs in combined wins across the 2021-22 and 2022-23 campaigns, while the Bulldogs (55) were tied for ninth.

Last Time Out
The Rockets opened the season at James Madison on Wednesday in the MAC-SBC Challenge and came away with a 60-49 comeback victory vs. their Sun Belt Conference counterparts.

Toledo trailed JMU by 21 points early in the second half but flipped the script entirely and outscored the Dukes 24-10 in the third quarter to make it a 43-37 game. Nan Garcia tied the game at 43-43 with back-to-back three-pointers to begin the fourth quarter and, following two James Madison free throws, Quinesha Lockett knocked down a three to give Toledo its first lead of the game at 46-45 with 4:32 to go. From that point on, the Rockets never trailed. They ended the game on a 9-0 run to improbably win by double-digits and kick off its 2023-24 season in style.

Quinesha Lockett Enters 2,000 Career Point Club
As clutch as her go-ahead three-pointer at James Madison was in the moment, Lockett's shot carried extra importance as it gave her exactly 2,000 career points, making her the third player in school history to reach that benchmark. She joins Mimi Olson (2,144 points) and Kim Knuth (2,509 points) as the only Rockets to score at least 2,000 points in a career.

Lockett's career total stands at 2,005 points entering play on Sunday. She ranks sixth among active Division I players in career points, all of whom are the only active players to reach that scoring milestone.

Rocket Notes

• The 21-point comeback win vs. JMU on Wednesday was Toledo's largest since erasing a 25-point deficit vs. Kent State in the 2001 MAC Tournament title game.
• The Rockets won their season opener for the fifth straight year and the seventh time in the last eight seasons.
• Wednesday's game was a tale of two halves for the Rockets. They connected on just 6-of-36 shots in the first half, while James Madison made 14-of-31 shots from the floor. In the second half, Toledo made 15-of-33 shots and the Dukes were just 4-of-27 from the field.
• Lockett scored 13 points and grabbed 10 rebounds vs. JMU, one of three MAC players to record a double-double in their season opener this year.
• Sophia Wiard ranks eighth all-time in school history with 468 career assists. She has more career assists than any current MAC player and she ranks 10^th among active Division I players in career assists.
• This will be the first-ever meeting vs. Gonzaga, but Toledo has competed in Spokane before. UT faced Idaho and Washington State in Spokane during the 2000-01 season

Toledo Picked First in MAC Preseason Coaches Poll
Toledo was picked to win its third-straight Mid-American Conference title in the annual preseason coaches poll, while Quinesha Lockett was named to the Preseason First-Team All-MAC squad, and Sophia Wiard and Sammi Mikonowicz were both named to the second team.

The league's 12 head coaches picked the Rockets to win the league for the second straight preseason poll, with 11 of the 12 votes going to UT. Ball State picked up the other first-place vote. Toledo also claimed 10 of the 12 votes to win the MAC Tournament in March, with Ball State receiving the other two votes.

The top five was comprised of Toledo (121 points), Ball State (110), Kent State (102), Bowling Green (77), and Northern Illinois (72).

About Gonzaga
The 2022-23 WCC Regular Season Champions, Gonzaga received an at-large NCAA Tournament berth last year and lost to No. 8 seed Ole Miss in the first round. This year, the Zags are 1-1 after winning at Montana on Monday and falling to No. 24 Washington State in overtime on Thursday. Gonzaga returns three players who averaged double figures in scoring last year in Yvonne Ejim, Brynna Maxwell, and Kaylynne Truong. All three were named to the preseason watch list for the 2024 Becky Hammon Player of the Year Award, a list that features Toledo's Quinesha Lockett as well.

Next Up
Toledo will host Cincinnati on Sunday, Nov. 19 in its first home game of the season.

Season and individual game tickets for the women's basketball program are on sale now.  For more information or to purchase tickets, visit the Rocket Athletic Ticket Office at the Sullivan Athletic Complex in Savage Arena, contact the Rocket Athletic Ticket Office at 419-530-GOLD (4653), or go online to UTRockets.com/tix.