Sunday, December 3
Fairfield, Conn.
1 p.m.
Lehigh University
5-4
55
at
65
Sacred Heart
3-4
1
2
3
4
F
Lehigh
12
14
21
8
55
Sacred Heart
19
21
14
11
65
Photo by: Ricky Bassman
Second Half Rally Comes Up Short in 65-55 Loss at Sacred Heart
12/3/2017 4:27:00 PM | Women's Basketball
FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Sophomore Gena Grundhoffer registered her second career-double-double with 18 points and a career-high 13 rebounds, but a second half rally by the Mountain Hawks fell short in a 65-55 loss at Sacred Heart on Sunday afternoon. Grundhoffer was 8-for-20 from the field and 2-of-4 from beyond the arc. Sophomore Camryn Buhr added 13 points and seven rebounds on 6-of-13 from the field, and senior Bernadette Devaney scored in double figures for the second straight game with 12 points on 4-of-7 from three-point range. After being down by 18 late in the first half, the Mountain Hawks rallied to get within one midway through the fourth quarter, before SHU ran off the final eight points of the game to hold off the Lehigh rally.
Lehigh shot 36.7 percent from the field and was 6-for-17 from three-point range, while SHU went 24-for-62 (38.7 percent) from the field and was 8-for-19 from the outside. The Mountain struggled at the free throw line in the game, going 5-for-13 and SHU came away with nine steals off 18 Lehigh turnovers. Lehigh (5-4) outrebounded the Pioneers (3-4) 45-38, while SHU held a 17-7 edge in points off turnovers, and a 32-24 advantage in the paint.
"We definitely did not execute down the stretch like we needed to," said head coach Sue Troyan. "I think we did a good job of fighting and clawing our way back into it in the third and fourth quarters, but turnovers came back to be our nemesis for the entire game. They did a good job pressuring us and not allowing us to do what we wanted to do down the stretch."
Grundhoffer started 3-for-5 including a three-pointer to help Lehigh go up 9-6, before Sacred Heart used a series of steals to go on a 5-0 run and take an 11-9 lead into the first media timeout at 4:29.
SHU hit a three following the timeout before Sexe found Buhr underneath to get Lehigh within two at 14-12. SHU added a fast break layup and Candice Leatherwood beat the first quarter buzzer with a three to give the Pioneers a 19-12 lead after one.
Sacred Heart began the second quarter on a 9-2 run, extending their overall run to 22-5 to take a 28-14 lead with 4:51 to go in the quarter. Grundhoffer and Mae Williams each added layups, but SHU had the answer each time to ensure Lehigh got no closer than 12 points. Devaney sank back-to-back three-pointers that got Lehigh within 36-24 with 1:14 to go and Cameryn Benz used two free throws with under a minute to go to get Lehigh to within 11. Katherine Haines drained an open three from the left wing to give the Pioneers a 40-26 edge at the half.
Sacred Heart used five steals on seven Lehigh turnovers and held a 12-3 edge in points off turnovers through the opening 20 minutes. Grundhoffer led all players with 11 points and seven rebounds at the break.
Buhr started the second half 3-for-5 with six points and Grundhoffer connected from downtown to get Lehigh back within single digits at 44-35 with 4:49 to go in the third quarter. Benz and Grundhoffer added back-to-back layups to cut it to 44-39, before SHU's Erin Storck drained a three to end the 9-0 Lehigh run. Buhr answered a short time later with a layup, and Devaney answered a Storck layup with another three-pointer to make it 50-44. After SHU got the lead back to 10, Devaney added her fourth three of the game in the final minute to make it 54-47 entering the fourth.
"We defended a lot better in the second half, and if we had a little better intensity in the first half, it probably would have been a different game," Troyan said. "We certainly dug ourselves a hole in the first half allowing them to do whatever they wanted to do offensively."
Grundhoffer and Mariah Sexe scored the first three points of the fourth to get Lehigh within four. After a SHU free throw, Hannah Hedstrom found Buhr, who juked past a defender underneath and laid it in to make it a one-point game at 55-54 with 5:27 to play. However, that would be the final field goal of the game for Lehigh, who missed their last seven shots from the field. Following a Haines layup with 3:50 to go, and Sexe got Lehigh back within two points with a free throw. Tykera Carter drained a three-pointer to make 60-55 after a LU turnover with just over two minutes left, and Haines delivered the dagger with a three-pointer after two Lehigh missed free throws to make it 63-55 with 1:19 left. Carter would add a breakaway layup following a steal to finalize the scoring for SHU and cement the 10-point victory.
"The free throws and turnovers were probably the difference in the game," Troyan said. "It was disappointing because I thought we gave the game away."
Lehigh will return home on Wednesday morning to host NJIT for the annual Education Day game at Stabler Arena. Tip off is at 11 a.m. and will be aired live on Service Electric 2 Sports, the Patriot League Network and Lehighsports.com/watch.
Like Lehigh women's basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
Lehigh shot 36.7 percent from the field and was 6-for-17 from three-point range, while SHU went 24-for-62 (38.7 percent) from the field and was 8-for-19 from the outside. The Mountain struggled at the free throw line in the game, going 5-for-13 and SHU came away with nine steals off 18 Lehigh turnovers. Lehigh (5-4) outrebounded the Pioneers (3-4) 45-38, while SHU held a 17-7 edge in points off turnovers, and a 32-24 advantage in the paint.
"We definitely did not execute down the stretch like we needed to," said head coach Sue Troyan. "I think we did a good job of fighting and clawing our way back into it in the third and fourth quarters, but turnovers came back to be our nemesis for the entire game. They did a good job pressuring us and not allowing us to do what we wanted to do down the stretch."
Grundhoffer started 3-for-5 including a three-pointer to help Lehigh go up 9-6, before Sacred Heart used a series of steals to go on a 5-0 run and take an 11-9 lead into the first media timeout at 4:29.
SHU hit a three following the timeout before Sexe found Buhr underneath to get Lehigh within two at 14-12. SHU added a fast break layup and Candice Leatherwood beat the first quarter buzzer with a three to give the Pioneers a 19-12 lead after one.
Sacred Heart began the second quarter on a 9-2 run, extending their overall run to 22-5 to take a 28-14 lead with 4:51 to go in the quarter. Grundhoffer and Mae Williams each added layups, but SHU had the answer each time to ensure Lehigh got no closer than 12 points. Devaney sank back-to-back three-pointers that got Lehigh within 36-24 with 1:14 to go and Cameryn Benz used two free throws with under a minute to go to get Lehigh to within 11. Katherine Haines drained an open three from the left wing to give the Pioneers a 40-26 edge at the half.
Sacred Heart used five steals on seven Lehigh turnovers and held a 12-3 edge in points off turnovers through the opening 20 minutes. Grundhoffer led all players with 11 points and seven rebounds at the break.
Buhr started the second half 3-for-5 with six points and Grundhoffer connected from downtown to get Lehigh back within single digits at 44-35 with 4:49 to go in the third quarter. Benz and Grundhoffer added back-to-back layups to cut it to 44-39, before SHU's Erin Storck drained a three to end the 9-0 Lehigh run. Buhr answered a short time later with a layup, and Devaney answered a Storck layup with another three-pointer to make it 50-44. After SHU got the lead back to 10, Devaney added her fourth three of the game in the final minute to make it 54-47 entering the fourth.
"We defended a lot better in the second half, and if we had a little better intensity in the first half, it probably would have been a different game," Troyan said. "We certainly dug ourselves a hole in the first half allowing them to do whatever they wanted to do offensively."
Grundhoffer and Mariah Sexe scored the first three points of the fourth to get Lehigh within four. After a SHU free throw, Hannah Hedstrom found Buhr, who juked past a defender underneath and laid it in to make it a one-point game at 55-54 with 5:27 to play. However, that would be the final field goal of the game for Lehigh, who missed their last seven shots from the field. Following a Haines layup with 3:50 to go, and Sexe got Lehigh back within two points with a free throw. Tykera Carter drained a three-pointer to make 60-55 after a LU turnover with just over two minutes left, and Haines delivered the dagger with a three-pointer after two Lehigh missed free throws to make it 63-55 with 1:19 left. Carter would add a breakaway layup following a steal to finalize the scoring for SHU and cement the 10-point victory.
"The free throws and turnovers were probably the difference in the game," Troyan said. "It was disappointing because I thought we gave the game away."
Lehigh will return home on Wednesday morning to host NJIT for the annual Education Day game at Stabler Arena. Tip off is at 11 a.m. and will be aired live on Service Electric 2 Sports, the Patriot League Network and Lehighsports.com/watch.
Like Lehigh women's basketball on Facebook, follow on Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content, team updates and more.
Team Stats
LEHIGH
SHU
FG%
.367
.387
3FG%
.353
.421
FT%
.385
.600
RB
45
38
TO
18
12
STL
4
9
Game Leaders
Pts
18
FGM
8
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
13
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Pts
4
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's Basketball
F
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