Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Lehigh
Bucknell Women's Basketball Hangs on for Close 62-56 Win at Lehigh
2/15/2012 7:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 15, 2012
BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Bucknell women's basketball went the final 6:12 without a field goal but strong play early in the game propelled the Bison to a 62-56 win over Lehigh at Stabler Arena on Wednesday night. The victory, which was spurred by 23 points from Shelby Romine (Centreville, Va./Westfield) and a second consecutive double-double from Lindsay Horbatuck (Avon, Conn./Avon) snapped a 10-game losing streak to the Mountain Hawks, who dropped their third straight decision.
Horbatuck finished the day with 13 points and 10 rebounds. The junior was 4-for-5 from the floor on the night, but equally important was her 5 of 6 performance from the free throw line. During its more than six minutes without a field goal, Bucknell (5-21, 3-8 PL) relied on its free throw shooting down the final stretch. While the Bison showed some shakiness as a team from the line, Horbatuck hit the final two attempts to put her team up 62-56 with 10 seconds remaining. Lehigh (13-12, 6-5 PL) got off one more shot before the final buzzer, but it came up short to hand Bucknell its hard-fought win.
As a team, Bucknell was 13-for-20 (.650) from the free throw line, including 6-for-12 in the second half. They shot at a 4-for-9 clip in the final 2:05 of the game, making the game much closer than the Bison faithful would have liked it. Heading into the final two minutes, Bucknell's lead had shrunk to 58-52 after they enjoyed a 19-point advantage just 12 minutes earlier.
Putting the Bison in the tight spot was Lehigh's defense that pressured Bucknell into several late turnovers. After opening the second half in a zone defense, the Mountain Hawks switched back to a man-to-man and was rewarded with several steals near mid-court. Those translated into baskets and free throw opportunities and put Lehigh back in contention.
Bucknell was able to hold on to its 12-point halftime lead, however. A total team effort put it in the hunt from the start as eight Bison scored in the first half. It was Romine that stood out from the crowd early as she put up 15 points in the opening 20 minutes. The guard was 4-for-8 from the field, including 3-for-4 from 3-point range, and 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
Romine ended the night with her second consecutive game at more than 20 points. The sophomore also had a season-high 26 at Lafayette last Saturday. Against the Mountain Hawks, Romine was 6 of 13 from the floor, including 4 of 6 from 3-point distance. She also shot 7-for-10 from the free throw line.
Romine's first 3-pointer and a pair of free throws opened Bucknell's scoring and brought the Bison to within 6-5. Although she continued to be effective for the rest of the half, her next three didn't come for another 15 minutes when at 5:03 she answered a Sarah Pearce 3-pointer and gave Bucknell a 32-22 advantage. Neither team scored a bucket for several minutes after the back-to-back exchange, but threes again rained down once the scoring began again. This time was Romine at 1:54 and Lehigh's Hilary Weaver on the next possession to set the score at 35-25.
While Bucknell's attacking offense put Lehigh on edge and drew a number of fouls, the Bison defense was equally effective in putting them in control. The Mountain Hawks turned the ball over 13 times in the first half, and the Bison capitalized for 15 points on those miscues. Lehigh also suffered a drought of 4:55 without a field goal. The skid took a 13-13 game at 12:11 to 23-14 in Bucknell's favor before Lehigh got back in the scoring column at 7:16.
Scrappy play held Lehigh to 34.6 percent shooting (9-26) and earned Bucknell the 22-12 rebounding advantage at the break. Horbatuck continued to work her ways on the glass with six rebounds before halftime, while Alexa Williams led the Mountain Hawks with three. At the end of the game, Bucknell had the 44-27 advantage on the glass.
Defense continued to be a leading factor in the way the second half played out. When Lehigh resumed play in a zone, Bucknell was knocked off its rhythm initially. The Bison were still able to get looks at the basket, but the pace slowed considerably.
Bucknell's defense continued to swarm in the paint and cause problems for the Mountain Hawks' forwards. Williams, who entered the game averaging nearly a double-double, was held to seven points on 2-for-8 shooting and six rebounds for the game.
With orange uniforms filling the paint, Lehigh was forced to rely on jumpers initially. The Mountain Hawks were 7-for-18 (.389) from behind the arc for the game, including 3-for-4 from Sarah Williams who hit two on back-to-back possessions to bring Lehigh within 48-35 with 13:28.
Bucknell originally looked as if it would be able to breathe easier as the long-range jumpers quit dropping as frequently for Lehigh. Despite the frenzied Mountain Hawk defensive effort that followed, the Bison continued to push their way to the end and the effort paid off with their third consecutive victory.
Joining Romine and Horbatuck in double-figure scoring was Rachel Voss (Cincinnati, Ohio/Loveland) with 11 points. She also had eight boards. Christina Chukwuedo (Monessen, Pa./Monessen) fell just short of her career high in assists with seven.
Kelly Peterwon tallied a Lehigh-best 12 points, while Emily Gratch and Sarah Williams added 11 apiece. Alexa Williams' six boards were a team high.
Bucknell will return to the court on Saturday when it hosts Holy Cross at 7 p.m. at Sojka Pavilion. The Bison will recognize Chukwuedo as part of Senior Night.
