Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Lafayette
Bucknell Women's Basketball Falls in Overtime to Lafayette, 64-58
1/23/2008 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 23, 2008
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LEWISBURG, Pa. - Bucknell's Lauren Schober (Chicago, Ill./Regina Dominican) banked in a desperation 3-pointer from 23 feet with 2.2 seconds left in regulation to tie the score at 55-55, but Lafayette converted 9 of 15 free throws in overtime as the Bison fell to the Leopards by a 64-58 score Wednesday night at Sojka Pavilion. The loss was the second in a row for Bucknell, which fell to 7-11 overall and 2-2 in the Patriot League. Lafayette won its third straight to improve to 11-8 overall and 3-1 in Patriot League play.
Bucknell, which played its third overtime game of the season, its most since 1998-99, trailed by as many as 11 points in the first half as the Leopards converted 11 of their first 17 field goals to build a 24-13 lead with 7:45 to play in the first half. The Bison zone defense then clamped down and held Lafayette to just one field goal and five turnovers the rest of the half until Jessica Spicer hit a 3-pointer from the right wing just seconds before the halftime buzzer. The Leopards went into halftime with a 29-27 advantage.
After failing to grab a rebound in the first 7:30 of play, thanks to 7 of 9 shooting by the Leopards, Bucknell faced just a 16-14 halftime deficit on the boards.
In the second half, neither team led by more than six points and there were eight ties and eight lead changes.
Bucknell's largest seclead came at 40-37 when it reeled off nine consecutive points in less than 90 seconds. Kristina Collymore (Montclair, N.J./Montclair) capped the run by converting a wild layup and a free throw for a three-point play.
Both teams struggled offensively the rest of the half as Bucknell was 2-for-9 with four turnovers from the 14-minute mark until the five-minute mark. Lafayette was not much better, going 2-for-8 from the field with five turnovers over the same span. The teams entered the final five minutes of play tied at 46-all.
A 3-pointer from the right wing by Cristin Zavocki, who tied Vanessa Van De Venter for team-high honors with 15 points, gave the Leopards a 53-48 lead with 2:20 to play.
Collymore had a chance to cut into that lead, but she was just 2-for-4 from the free throw line on back-to-back possessions. At the same time Jessica Spicer and Emily Garner combined to go 2-for-4 from the line to help Lafayette keep its five-point lead in the low-scoring game. Garner's free throw attempts came after she grabbed an offensive rebound following Spicer's miss.
Trailing 55-50 with just over 30 seconds to play, Bucknell called its final timeout. Kesha Champion (Chesapeake, Va./Indian River), who was 0-for-6 from 3-point range, missed a 3-pointer, but Andrea Wright (Bowie, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt) grabbed the offensive rebound and converted a left-handed layup to cut the deficit to 55-52.
Wright immediately fouled Spicer, who promptly missed both free throws and finished the game 1-for-4 from the line. Schober grabbed the rebound, setting the scene for her heroics. Once into the frontcourt, the Bison passed the ball around the perimeter, but were unable to get a clean look. Finally, Champion found Schober 23 feet from the basket and Schober launched her shot that banked in and tied the score to send the game to overtime.
Both teams struggled shooting in overtime as they combined to go 1 of 13 from the field. However, Lafayette was 9 of 15 from the free throw line, including 4 of 6 from Garner and 3 of 4 from Van De Venter. Bucknell's lone points in the overtime period came from Wright, who scored four points and grabbed five rebounds off the bench, and Champion, who made 1 of 2 free throws.
Both teams struggled from the line as they combined to go 29 of 53. Bucknell was 12 of 22, while Lafayette was 17 of 31.
After opening the game red-hot, the Leopards cooled off and shot 21 of 50 (42.0 percent) from the floor. They were 14 of 41 after their 7 of 9 start. The Bison, who made 5 of 8 field goals to open the game, was 22 of 62 (35.5 percent). Schober's 5 of 9 from the field led the way.
Foster led the way for the Bison on the offensive end with a game-high 16 points and nine rebounds. It was her highest point total since registering 17 against Howard in the fourth game of the season and her highest rebound figure since Dec. 28 against Illinois-Chicago. Collymore added 13 points and Schober contributed 12 and eight rebounds. Champion, who had scored in double figures in six of the last seven games, registered seven points on 2 of 12 shooting, but did dish out four assists.
Garner and LaKeisha Wright joined Zavocki and Van De Venter in double figures with 11 points and 10 points, respectively, for Lafayette. Garner also grabbed 11 rebounds, while Spicer and Wright had seven apiece. The Leopards outrebounded the Bison 41-34 in the game.
In addition to her big night offensively, Foster totaled four blocks for Bucknell. She now has 306 in her career, just three shy of equaling the Patriot League record.
The overtime loss for the Bison was just their second in their last nine overtime games. They are 2-1 in overtime contests this season, and 11-4 under 11th-year head coach Kathy Fedorjaka.
Bucknell, which has lost the first two games of its three-game homestand, will host Colgate Saturday at 2 p.m. The Raiders upset the top-seeded Bison in the first round of last year's Patriot League Tournament.
