The American University women’s basketball team (6-19) lost to the Bucknell Bison (12-13) in their Feb. 15 game at Bender Arena 64-52. Captains senior forward Lauren Stack and junior forward Emily Johns led the team in scoring with 18 and 11 points, respectively.
Both teams warmed up in pink shirts with pink ribbons in recognition of Play4Kay, a sports-focused breast cancer awareness organization dedicated to the late basketball coach Kay Yow.
American kicked off the scoring, continuing on a consistent pace throughout the first quarter. Junior guard Ivy Bales dominated for AU, putting up 6 of the team’s 11 total points in the quarter. Defense was strong from both teams and the shot clock pressure was prominent. The Eagles and Bison took turns scoring with AU in the lead the entire time until Bucknell tied it up with two free throws from forward Emma Shaffer.
The Bison kicked off the second quarter with back to back 3-pointers, taking the lead over the Eagles for the first time all game. They would never relinquish this lead. Junior guard Kayla Henning excited the small crowd in Bender Arena with a shot-clock buzzer beater jumper, but the burst of energy died down quickly.
After being evenly matched in the first quarter, the Bucknell offense was finally getting the best of American. Senior guard Sadie Stetson got the Eagles back in the game temporarily with a 3-pointer, but Bucknell quickly fired back to grow their lead to 7 points and close the half in the lead 30-23.
The Bison once again started the quarter with a 3-pointer and were suddenly ahead of the Eagles by 10 points. American’s chemistry seemed to be off, while Bucknell was clicking. The Bison doubled their lead during the third quarter, finishing off up by 14 points.
Stack fired off 6 points within the first few minutes of the fourth quarter to bring the Eagles back within 10 points, but her solo heroics would not be enough. Stack put up a season-high 18 points, but her offense couldn’t make up for the lack of production from her teammates.
On Bucknell’s side, Shaffer achieved a double double with 21 rebounds and 12 points. Shaffer was a problem for the Eagles on both sides of the court with seven offensive rebounds and 14 defensive. American’s offense picked up a bit towards the end, but it was too little too late as Bucknell was already so far ahead, and the Eagles fell to the Bison 64-52.
“I was a little disappointed with the way we played. We just didn’t play together, we didn’t have that energy, that charisma that we had the last game,” head coach Tiffany Coll said.
The Eagles fell to the Lehigh Mountain Hawks on Saturday, Feb. 15 66-49. They next take on the Navy Midshipmen on Wednesday, Feb. 22 in Annapolis, Maryland.
This article was edited by Delaney Hoke and Nina Heller. Copy editing done by Isabelle Kravis and Natasha LaChac.
