Bucknell University
Navy
Bison Women's Basketball Defeats Navy, 73-60, in Front of ESPN2 Audience
2/17/2003 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 16, 2003
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Three Bucknell women's basketball players scored in double-figures as the team cruised to a 73-60 victory over visiting Navy on Sunday, February 16. The game was the first regular-season women's Patriot League contest to be televised on ESPN2.
Navy jumped out to a 2-0 lead, but that was the only time the Bison would trail in the contest. Senior Kate Franks put the Orange and Blue on the board, making three free throws after being fouled on a three-point attempt and giving the team a 3-2 lead it would never surrender. Bucknell led by as many as eight several times in the early part of the game, but the Mids put together a 10-3 run over a four minute span to climb back within one, 22-21.
Two foul shots by freshman Jennie Ruth jump started the Bison offense to an 11-1 spurt that put the team ahead 33-22 with 2:13 to go in the half. The Navy squad did not go quietly, however, battling back to within five at the break, 34-29. A Maile Shimoda three-pointer squeezed between four points from Nikki Curtis helped the Mids close out the frame on a 7-1 run.
Navy opened the second half strong, chipping away at the lead to get within two, 36-34, after a three-point play by Kate Maslowski. Bucknell led 43-40 with 15:20 to go in the game before senior Molly Creamer scored five unanswered for BU to give the team an eight-point cushion.
The Bison held a 56-51 lead with just over 10 minutes left in the contest before embarking on an 11-4 run that spanned five minutes to go ahead by 12, 67-55. Creamer, who entered the game leading the country in scoring, tallied six points during the decisive run.
Navy closed the gap to within seven, 67-60, with just under three minutes to play, but the Orange and Blue ended the game outscoring the Mids 6-0 for the 73-60 victory.
Bucknell was hot in the second half, shooting .542 (13-24) from the field, including .556 (5-9) from three-point territory. The Bison won the battle on the glass, holding a 40-27 edge in the rebounding column. Junior Desire Almind led the way with a career-best 15 caroms to go along with 16 points. It is Almind's fourth-straight double-double.
Creamer led all scorers with 24 points, while handing out seven assists and grabbing seven rebounds. Franks joined Creamer and Almind in double-figures with 17 on a perfect night from the floor. Franks connected on all five of her field goal attempts, including four triples, while also making 3-of-3 from the foul line.
Navy placed four players in double-figures, led by 13 from Courtney Davidson. Curtis and Alison Luchsinger each added 11, and Adrienne Roseti tossed in 10.
Bucknell snaps a three-game losing skid with the win, improving to 10-12 overall and 5-5 in the Patriot League. BU is in action next on Friday, February 21, when it embarks on the final road trip of the year. The Orange and Blue travel to Lafayette to face the Leopards at 5:30 p.m. before heading to Army for a contest against the Cadets on Sunday, February 23, at 1:00 p.m.
The Mids, who entered the contest tied with the Bison for fourth place in the league, drop to 14-9 overall and 4-6 in conference play.
