“Photo courtesy of Sports Information”
By Abby Condon, Staff Writer
The Susquehanna University women’s basketball team lost 63-56 in a hard-fought battle against Drew University on Wednesday, Feb. 12 in Madison, N.J. With the loss, the River Hawks dropped down to sixth in the Landmark Conference standings.
In the first period, the River Hawks came out firing, earning a 13-6 advantage as sophomore Amalia Esposito led the way by scoring five points immediately.
In the second quarter, Susquehanna continued to build its lead with sophomore Sadie Comfort connecting on a three-pointer and junior guards Erin McQuillen and Nevin Hoenninger adding five points each. The rest of the quarter, however, belonged to Drew, as the Rangers came alive scoring 16 points to take the lead at halftime 28-24.
The second half found Drew extending their lead with Susquehanna fighting to close that gap several times. Going into the fourth quarter, the score sat 46-38 in favor of Drew thanks to a 7-1 run to close the third quarter.
As the game neared its end, Susquehanna was able to make one final push, as the River Hawks hit five consecutive three-point shots, with Comfort hitting three in a row to tie the game at 55-55.
Overall, Comfort scored a career-best of 20 points and McQuillen made a free throw late to put the River Hawks ahead by one with 2:09 left on the clock. Drew capitalized on failed shot attempts and turnovers by Susquehanna, however, to take the lead away and by scoring eight unanswered points and ultimately clinching 63-56 victory.
Field goal shooting by both teams was evenly matched with Susquehanna connecting on 36% of shots taken compared to Drew’s 36.2%. Rebounds was a strong point for the River Hawks, as the team led the way with 39 to Drew’s 32. Hoenninger grabbed seven of those rebounds and McQuillen added six of her own.
Following a difficult loss against Drew, Susquehanna returned to action on Saturday, Feb. 15, once again falling short 82-64 against Catholic in Washington, D.C.
In the first quarter, the River Hawks were slow to find their groove, as Catholic jumped out to an early 8-0 lead. Shooting close to 50% from the field and connecting on eight of 11 free throw attempts, the Cardinals were able to extend their lead to 23-8 as the period came to a close.
In the second quarter, Susquehanna began to come alive and connected on baskets to score 21 points. Catholic didn’t let off the gas, however, scoring 25 points and extending their lead to 48-29 heading into halftime.
In the second half, the River Hawks continued to find success, inching closer and closer to Catholic, as the Cardinals slowed a bit. In the fourth quarter specifically, Susquehanna scored 19 of the first 36 points, but the team was ultimately unable to overcome the first-half scoring deficit.
25 total turnovers for Susquehanna proved to be the deciding factor as the Cardinals capitalized with 24 points from those errors and picked up the victory with a final score of 82-64.
McQuillen had an exceptional game with 21 points and six rebounds with Esposito finishing up with 12 points and eight rebounds. Sophomore forward Olivia Brandt added to the Susquehanna scoring totals with five points and three rebounds. Freshman guard Kaitlyn Lynch also added 12 points and three rebounds
“We knew it was going to be a tough fight all the way through all four quarters, and it was,” Comfort said. “Catholic is a tough competitor, but we are a good matchup for them.”
Susquehanna will return to action on Saturday, Feb. 22 to take on Juniata in the final game of the regular season in Selinsgrove, Pa.