Bucknell University
6-0,6-0Patriot
Lehigh
4-2,4-2Patriot
Women's Basketball Moves to 6-0 With 80-66 Home Victory Over Lehigh
1/17/2021 5:56:00 PM | Women's Basketball
LEWISBURG, Pa. – Tessa Brugler wrapped up an impressive weekend on the backboards with her second consecutive double-double (12 points, 14 rebounds), Autumn Ceppi totaled nine points, six rebounds and a career-high 11 assists and Bucknell women's basketball registered 24 assists against just seven turnovers in an 80-66 victory over Lehigh Sunday afternoon at Sojka Pavilion.
The Bison (6-0, 4-0 PL Central) defeated the Mountain Hawks (4-2, 2-2 PL Central) for the second consecutive day.
Brugler, who had a career-high 19 rebounds in Saturday's win, finished the weekend with 33 in the two games as she helped Bucknell to a 44-29 edge on the boards in Sunday's win.
Taylor O'Brien and Abby Kapp tied for team-high honors in points for the Bison with 18 apiece. They combined to make 17 of their 26 field goals, helping Bucknell shoot 34-for-66 (51.5 percent) in the contest.
The Bison led 39-33 at halftime and took control of the game in the pivotal third quarter. Ceppi totaled four of her assists in the opening minutes of the third quarter as Bucknell opened the frame on an 11-2 run. The Bison lead extended to as many as 20 points (57-37).
Lehigh cut its deficit to 59-52 late in the third quarter, but Bucknell closed the quarter on a 5-0 run to take a 64-52 edge into the final frame.
Lehigh was led on the offensive end by Mary Clougherty, who scored 15 points off the bench thanks for four 3-pointers. Frannie Hottinger pulled down a team-high nine rebounds.
Bucknell's 6-0 start is its best since opening the 1986-87 season 7-0.
"We're happy to be where we're at. I think there are many positives. We've been able to survive with our veteran players," said head coach Trevor Woodruff. "It's hard to complain. There are areas we need to improve, but we're happy to be improving while we're 6-0."
It was O'Brien who got the offense going with 12 first-quarter points on 6-of-8 shooting. The Bison opened the game on a 10-2 run, but after starting the quarter 1-for-11 the Mountain Hawks connected on six of their next seven attempts and trailed by just one heading into the second.
Lehigh took the lead on the opening possession of the second quarter for the last time in the game. The Bison responded with 7-for-13 (53.8%) shooting and five forced turnovers in the quarter and would carry a 39-33 lead into halftime.
Bucknell's offense was even better on the other side of the halftime break, shooting 11-for-18 (61.1%) and knocking down 2-of-4 attempts from beyond the arc. A 9-0 Bison run in the middle of the quarter put Bucknell up 20. Lehigh responded with its own 9-0 run to whittle the deficit back down to 10, but Bucknell maintained a double-digit lead into the fourth. Kapp scored 11 of her 18 points in the third, and the team posted a game-high eight assists.
A Lehigh 3-pointer with 4:01 remaining in the game brought the Mountain Hawks back within single digits, but Kapp responded immediately with her own three and Bucknell outscored Lehigh 10-5 over the final three and a half minutes. Bucknell limited Lehigh to 4-of-14 (28.6%) in the fourth quarter.
Ultimately, eight different Bison finished with assists and four scored in double figures. Ally Johnson put up 10 points with a pair of 3-pointers, and Carly Krsul chipped in four assists with six points and eight rebounds. Kapp also grabbed eight boards. Ceppi is the first Bucknell player with double-digit assists since 2013.
The Bison opened a four-game homestand on Sunday. They will host Colgate for two games next weekend before facing Lehigh two more times the following weekend (Jan. 30-31).
