The AU women’s basketball team exploded for 50 second-half points en route to a 73-62 come-from-behind victory over the Holy Cross Crusaders Saturday in Worcester, Mass. Two wins in the team’s final two contests will now clinch the No. 1 seed in the Patriot League Tournament for the Eagles.
Liz Leer helped erase a 32-23 halftime deficit with her fifth double-double of the season (19 of her 25 points in the second half, 10 rebounds), and the Eagles’ win moved them into first place in the Patriot League. Alex Smith, who totaled 16 points on 6-9 shooting, paced the Crusaders.
“Today we showed our toughness and resilience by overcoming a tough start to the game and rebounding with a quality second half,” AU Head Coach Matt Corkery told AU Athletics. “We worked to get better shots as the game progressed and played with a lot of energy and determination.”
After trailing by as many as 10 points in the first half, a Leer layup with 13:03 remaining put AU up 40-39 for its first lead since the 9:53 mark of the first half.
On the ensuing possession, Holy Cross regained the lead with two free throws from Brisje Malone. But Lisa Strack, who tallied 11 points and six assists on the afternoon, answered with a 3-pointer to give AU a lead it would never relinquish.
Strack’s triple put the Eagles ahead 43-41 with 12:21 to play. AU would then score seven of the next eight points to extend its lead to 50-42 with just under nine minutes left.
The Crusaders pulled to within two points on four separate occasions during the final eight minutes, but could never tie or take the lead from the Eagles. An Alyssa May conventional 3-point play made it 59-58 AU with 3:25 left, but that would be the closest Holy Cross would get in the game’s final minutes.
AU responded to May’s effort with a 9-1 run to secure the victory. Ebony Edwards was the main contributor, as the guard totaled six points during the stretch that saw AU’s lead balloon from 59-58 to 68-59. The Eagles went 5-7 from the free throw line down the stretch to secure the win.
The Patriot League Tournament is set to begin Mar. 5. A loss to Navy on Wednesday would give the Midshipmen its second win over AU this season and drop the Eagles to second in the conference.
Following the crucial showdown with Navy, AU will host the Lafayette Leopards on Saturday, Feb. 26 in the final regular season game for both teams.
Ttomea@theeagleonline.com
