By Rachael Cataldo, Asst. Sports Editor
Senior River Hawk Tess Nichols scored a career-high 20 points but the Susquehanna women’s basketball team suffered their first loss of the season to the Lycoming Warriors 85-75 on Sunday afternoon in Selinsgrove at the O.W. Houts Gymnasium.
“Of course, it’s a cool feeling [to score a career high], but also bittersweet knowing we didn’t get the win,” Nichols said after the game.
Susquehanna (2-1) and Lycoming (4-1) went back and forth in the first quarter. Senior Courtney Adams sunk a three- pointer to give Susquehanna a four-point lead late in the quarter. Lycoming closed out the play of the period with a small 23-21 lead.
Junior Bailey Trell had a pivotal jump shot in the second quarter with 1:34 to go and capped a 9-0 run as the River Hawks cut the Warriors’ lead 37-34 into halftime.
To start off the third quarter, Trell hit a three-pointer to trim the lead to just one. The score stayed close for the remainder of the period until Lycoming converted a three-point play to take a four-point lead 57-53 with nine seconds to go until the final period.
Lycoming used three-pointers to their advantage, scoring five to give the team a 13-point lead 73-60 in the fourth quarter. Susquehanna answered with an 11-3 run including a pair of three-pointers by Nichols. The lead was cut to 76-71 with a little over three minutes to go in the game. A jump shot by senior Megan McFadden and a pair of free-throws by Trell made the score 83-75.
“It is important for myself to be a leader both on and off the court, and I plan to continue to work on that everyday,” Trell said. “We are a team and I love being a part of it.”
A River Hawk foul allowed the Warriors to score two more free throw points towards the end, resulting in a tough loss.
“A major point of emphasis moving forward from Lycoming would be our defense,” Nichols said. “We executed on offense, but failed to stop their best players in the paint or on the three-point line.”
“I believe we need to focus on keeping our heads in the game the entire time, rather than going on runs and then slowing down,” Trell said.
“We need to be able to throw a punch, but we also need to be able to take one,” head coach Jim Reed told the team before Sunday night’s game.
Susquehanna ended the day going 27-70 on field goal shots, 8-22 on three-pointers, and 13- 18 on free throws.
Nichols was one of four River Hawks to score double dig- its. Trell and sophomore Rachel Sweger each added 12 points.
McFadden recorded her first double-double of the season with 11 points and 10 rebounds. She also led the team with seven assists on the day.
“While I am happy about the personal achievement, basketball is a team sport and I wish I could’ve done more to help my team get that win,” McFadden said after the game.
Susquehanna bounced back and defeated King’s College in a thriller on the road Wednesday night 62-61.
The River Hawks return to action tomorrow at home to face Goucher in their first conference matchup of the season. Game time for Susquehanna is 4 p.m. in Houts Gymnasium.