Staten Island, NY – The Mercyhurst Women's Basketball team traveled to Wagner College in their throwback royal blue jerseys. They arrived with hopes of capturing a win after narrowly losing to Wagner at home by eight points this past Saturday. This time, the Lakers left victorious as they beat the Seahawks 63-57 to pick up their first win away from home this season.
How it Happened
The Lakers hit the ground running as they went on a 7-0 run for the first three and a half minutes of the quarter. This began with a three-point shot made by
Singo Lekeuneu shortly after tipoff. Wagner's slow start to the game was quickly forgotten as they tied the game at 10 with under two minutes to play in the quarter. Taleah Washington then sank a three-point shot from the top of the key with three seconds remaining in the quarter. The Seahawks led 13-12 after one quarter of play.
Wagner extended their lead after a couple layups made early on. However,
Jenna Van Schaik of the Lakers found an open
Quinn Borroni whose three-pointer tied the game at 17. Mercyhurst took a five-point lead before Klea Kaci's three-pointer narrowed the Lakers lead. This was immediately followed by a made three from Ally Ross to keep the Lakers lead alive. The second quarter was higher scoring and Mercyhurst went in the locker room up 32-26 at the break.
Mercyhurst took their largest lead of the night by going up 38-27 in the first couple minutes of the quarter. The Seahawks started edging away at the lead after scoring nine unanswered points midway through the quarter. Wagner outscored Mercyhurst 16-11, but the Lakers led 43-42 at the end of the third.
Wagner eliminated Mercyhurst's longstanding lead as Keana Foz scored a driving layup to start the fourth quarter. The Lakers would equalize, then the Seahawks would go ahead again. However, after four free throws from
Allyson Ross and a made layup from
Bailey Kuhns, Mercyhurst took a 52-48 lead. There were four and a half minutes remaining in the game at this point. The Lakers then extended their lead from a driving layup made by
Jenna Van Schaik who earned herself an and-one from the play. The free throw was no good, but
Bailey Kuhns secured the offensive rebound and scored. This was the sequence that undoubtedly gave the Lakers the confidence they needed to close out the game. A late push from Wagner was not enough as the final score from the Spiro Sports Center was 63-57.
Highlights
Bailey Kuhns led the team with 18 points.
Allyson Ross and
Jenna Van Schaik were both 7-9 from the free throw line.
Mercyhurst shot 48.8% from the field as opposed to Wagner shooting 33.9%.
Mercyhurst held the lead for 77% of the game.
Up Next
Mercyhurst will continue on the road to take on Long Island University for the second time this week. The Lakers dominated at home in their previous matchup against the Sharks, winning 78-51. This next matchup will tipoff in Brooklyn on Saturday, January 25th at 2:00 PM. Viewers can find live coverage on the NEC Front Row.
