Box Score

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – Facing the eighth-ranked team in the nation, the Lycoming College women’s basketball team put forth one of its best efforts of the season, taking a two-point lead with 14:40 left in the contest, but Messiah College went on a 13-point run to help lift it to a 58-45 Commonwealth Conference win at Lamade Gymnasium on Friday afternoon, Dec. 14.
 
The Warriors (2-6 overall, 2-3 Commonwealth) used a solid defensive effort that forced 15 turnovers and led to nine fastbreak points to stay tough with the No. 8/8 Falcons (8-0 overall, 5-0 Commonwealth), who turned the game around by scoring 13 points off turnover in the second half.
 
The Warriors finished with the same number of field goals (18) and hit four 3-pointers to the Falcons’ five, but got to the line just 10 times, hitting five, while Messiah went to the line 25 times, hitting 17.
 
The Falcons, who took a two-point lead into the break, scored the first points of the second half, but Lycoming fought right back with a 10-2 run, starting it with a 3-pointer from freshman Shanley Harlacker (Red Lion, Pa./Red Lion Area) and capping it with a 3-pointer on a break by senior Rachael Scheller (Sunbury, Pa./Shikellamy) to make it 32-30 with 14:40 left and forcing Messiah to call timeout.
 
After the timeout, the Falcons scored 13 points in a row, starting a 27-8 run over the next 12 minutes that helped the Falcons escape from the upset effort from the Warriors.
 
The Falcons started the game with a  9-4 run, but a full-court press immediately frustrated the ranked foes and helped the Warriors score nine points in a row, with sophomore Janelle Ziminski (Drums, Pa./Hazleton Area) capping the run with a 3-pointer with 8:01 left in the first half to make it 13-9.
 
In the rest of the half, the team’s fought through four ties and neither team took a lead of more than four points. Messiah took a 24-22 lead with 1:10 left when Kira Maier hit a jumper to wrap up the scoring in the half.
 
Scheller led the Warriors with 12 points, three assists, three rebounds and one steal, as she hit 5-of-7 shots from the floor. Sophomore Ali Derr (Milton, Pa./Milton Area) added nine points and four rebounds and junior Julia Antonelli (Hanover, Pa./New Oxford) added seven points and eight rebounds, as she became the 26^th player in school history to reach 600 career points in the contest.
 
Dori Gyori posted 24 points and 18 rebounds to lead the Falcons. Taylor Miller added eight points, two rebounds and two steals and Chelsea Danel added five points and five assists. Nicky Hess hit two 3-pointers to finish with seven points, also adding three assists.
 
The Warriors get back in action on Friday, Dec. 28, at 5 p.m. when they face Massachusettes College of Liberal Arts in a 5 p.m. game to open the Hoops for Hounds Tournament at Lamade Gym.