WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – Junior Nicole Calella (Sandyston, N.J./Kittatinny Regional) led the Lycoming College women's basketball team with 16 points in a nailbiter that came down to the final seconds, but Lycoming fell victim to a tough defensive stand to lift Messiah to a 69-66 win in MAC Commonwealth action on Wednesday night, Feb. 3, in Lamade Gym.

The Warriors fall to 12-9 overall and 7-5 in the MAC Commonwealth while the Falcons improve to 14-6 overall and 8-3 in conference.

Calella hit 6-of-9 from the field and all four free throws to go along with five rebounds, six assists and three steals. Sophomore Shelby Mueller (Collegeville, Pa./Spring-Ford) finished with 12 points on 3-for-6 shooting with eight rebounds while sophomore Haley Sipple (Boothwyn, Pa./Chichester) contributed 11 points and seven rebounds. Freshman Becca Painter (Elverson, Pa./Owen J. Roberts) finished with a season-high nine points and senior Chelsea Henderson (Yonkers, N.Y./Yonkers) finished with eight points and five steals, tying her with Julia Antonelli (2010-14) for 10th in school history.

After both teams exchanged three baskets to begin the game, the Falcons scored 12 straight to take an 18-6 lead. The Warriors were able to end the quarter on a 6-2 run but still trailed 20-12 after 10 minutes.

Trailing 29-20 late in the second quarter, the Warriors used a 10-4 run to end the first half and pull to within 33-30 at halftime. Calella, Sipple, Painter, and freshman Jenn Grove (Chambersburg, Pa./Chambersburg Area) combined to hit 7-of-8 free throws during the run.

The Warriors went 10-for-12 (.833) on free throws in the first half, held the rebounding advantage (18-17) and were able to force nine turnovers.

After falling behind by four in the third quarter, Mueller converted an old-fashioned three-point play followed by a layup by Calella to take a 39-38 lead. On the next possession, Henderson came up with a steal which led to another layup for Mueller. The next two possessions for the Falcons ended in baskets as they retook the lead, 42-41. The two teams battled for the rest of the quarter and, with time ticking down, Calella hit a tough off-balanced shot as the buzzer sounded to take a 50-49 lead into the final frame.

The Falcons opened the fourth on a 12-3 run to take a 61-53 lead. The Warriors fought back and pulled the score to within five before Mueller hit a layup and the free throw for another three-point play. After the teams exchanged points, Calella hit a baseline jumper with 1:18 left as the Warriors trailed 65-64. The teams exchanged two points again before sophomore Kaitlyn Hoff hit a layup to give the Falcons a 69-66 lead. On the next Falcon possession, Dominique Seamon missed two free throws to keep it at a one-possession game, but the Warriors were unable to get a shot off in time on the final possession of the game.

As a team, the Warriors shot 22-for-49 (.449) from the field and made 20-of-24 (.833) free throws while forcing the Falcons into 18 turnovers and scoring 24 points in the paint.

Glackin finished with a double-double with 23 points and 10 rebounds to go along with two blocks and three steals. Senior Libby Timmer finished with 13 points and sophomore Jen Fairbanks notched 11.

The Warriors will return to action on Saturday, Feb. 6, when they travel to Arcadia for a 1 p.m. MAC Commonwealth contest.?