The women’s basketball team notched its ninth consecutive victory by defeating the two-time defending conference champion Lehigh University Mountain Hawks 64-51 Saturday at Stabler Arena in Bethlehem, Pa.
“It’s nice because we know that we can go on the road and play well against a really good Lehigh team,” Head Coach Matt Corkery told AU Athletics. “I thought several of our kids really stepped up in the second half and made plays when they had to. It’s a great start [to the Patriot League season] and a win that we can gain confidence from as we move forward in conference play.”
Senior forward Liz Leer led AU with a game-high 25 points to go along with seven rebounds, three blocks and two steals. Senior guard Nicole Ryan chipped in 11 points, as the Eagles became the first Patriot League squad to defeat Lehigh at Stabler Arena in the past 18 games. Lehigh’s Courtney Dentler had a team-high 11 points and registered six rebounds for the Mountain Hawks.
The Eagles executed an effective offense well all night while effectively stopping the Lehigh attack. AU shot 46 percent from the field and went 6-12 from beyond the arc, with Ryan and Leer each nailing three three-pointers. The Mountain Hawks misfired on 40 of their 56 field goal attempts. AU outrebounded Lehigh 43-33 to help limit second chance opportunities.
“We struggled the whole game to get any type of flow,” Lehigh Head Coach Sue Troyan told Lehigh Sports. “Credit them defensively. We struggled to get any rhythm going on the offensive end.”
With just under 11 minutes remaining in the second half, Lehigh’s Emily Gratch made a layup to cap a 10-5 run that cut the AU lead to 45-44.
The Eagles would respond by going on a critical 10-0 run that extended their lead to 55-44 with 5:41 left to play. Ryan scored five points during the crucial stretch.
Gratch hit a layup as the clock went under four minutes to pull Lehigh to within single digits. Dentler next scored from long range just seconds later to cut AU’s lead to six as the Mountain Hawks hoped to stage a comeback in the game’s final three minutes.
But each time Lehigh made a run, the Eagles would respond with scores of their own. As AU held on to a 55-49 lead, the Eagles closed the game by scoring nine of the game’s final 11 points. Five points from Leer pushed the AU advantage to 60-49. AU outscored Lehigh 32-19 in the second half to come away with a 64-51 victory.
With the win, the Eagles improved to 11-4 overall and 1-0 in conference play. AU will next play on the road against Bucknell University on Wednesday, Jan. 12, before returning home on Saturday, Jan. 15 to take on Colgate.
ttomea@theeagleonline.com
