ERIE, Pa.- The Mercyhurst women's basketball team lost, 57-56, to #25 Gannon Wednesday evening at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center. Jen Papich hit a layup with two seconds left to give the Lady Knights the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division contest.
 
It was a tight game all the way through, as neither team led by more than seven points. With 8:05 left, Mollie Sebald tied the game at 47 on a layup. Nikki Frederickson followed with a lay-in and then Katie Carbee's long two-pointer gave the Lakers a 51-47 edge with 7:16 to play.
 
Sebald split two free throws and then Nettie Blake hit a bucket to make it 51-50 with 5:12 to go. A pair of free throws by Megan Hoffman put Hurst ahead 53-50 before Sebald hit another shot from the charity stripe. Hoffman made one of three free throw tries and then Papich hit a jumper to get within one with 3:21 remaining. The teams traded misses before Dana Banda's lay-in put the Lakers up 56-53 with 1:24 to go.
 
Papich followed with two free throws with 62 seconds left, making it 56-55 Hurst. After turnovers by each side, Gannon made a defensive stop, setting up Papich in the final seconds.
 
Nettie Blake started the game with a bucket for the Knights and then Frederickson evened the score with 18:11 left. It was a slow-starting match, as Sebald's jump shot put GU ahead 6-4 with 15:32 to go. Out of the media timeout, Katie Carbee nailed a three-pointer, giving Hurst its first lead at 7-6.
 
Gannon regained the edge with a Candice Hendricks basket, but Lindsay Stamp and Frederickson each made layups to give Mercyhurst an 11-8 lead with 12:09 left. Banda hit a trey soon thereafter and the Lakers led until Caitlyn Lowe drilled a three to put GU up 16-14 with 9:41 to go. After a Carbee lay-in, Kelley Sundberg hit a trey for the visitors and Kaylee Foster answered with a bucket, making it 21-20 Gannon.
 
A triple and lay-in by Stamp made it 25-21 Lakers with 2:19 to play in the first frame. A free throw and then a layup by Banda gave Hurst its largest lead at 28-21. The hosts went into the locker room with a 28-23 advantage, using a 16-2 lead in paint points in the first twenty minutes.
 
Lowe began the second half with a three-pointer and then Doriyon Glass made two free throws and a trey to put GU up 31-28 a minute into the frame. Hoffman, scoreless in the first half, came alive, hitting a triple to tie the contest at 31. Buckets by Blake and Papich put Gannon up 35-31 with 17:35 to play.
 
Lowe nailed another three-pointer, giving Gannon a 38-31 lead. Three-pointers by Banda and Hoffman got the Lakers within one and then Frederickson tied the game with a free throw. Lowe came back with another trey as the Knights went ahead 43-38. Hoffman eventually hit triples on consecutive possessions to give the Lakers a 47-45 edge with 8:30 to play. Gannon (12-3, 9-2 PSAC) called timeout and then Sebald came out of the break with a bucket, tying the match.
 
Hoffman led Hurst with 15 points, all in the second half. Banda added 11 points with eight assists. Carbee, Frederickson, and Stamp all scored nine points, as Frederickson grabbed 12 boards. Four Knights scored double figures, led by Lowe with 12. Sebald and Glass each had 11 and Papich finished with 10.
 
As a team, Mercyhurst shot 21-51 (41.2 percent) from the field, while Gannon hit 20-50 (40 percent) attempts. The Lakers outrebounded GU, 39-28, including a 14-8 edge on the offensive glass.
 
Mercyhurst (8-7, 6-5 PSAC) hosts Indiana (Pa.), another nationally-ranked PSAC West foe, Saturday, January 21, at the MAC. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.
 
For a box score of the Gannon-Mercyhurst game, please click here.