Box Score The Peacocks (1-5, 0-0 MAAC) fell to the Leopards (1-5, 0-0 PL) 72-69 in non-conference women's basketball action on Sunday.
Sajanna Bethea (Levittown, Pa. / Pennsbury) recorded a double-double with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and one assist. Bridget Whitfield (San Diego, Calif. / La Costa Canyon) followed with 12 points and one rebounds while Talah Hughes (Beacon, N.Y. / Beacon) tallied 10 points, seven rebounds, and two assists.
Saint Peter's opened the game with a 8-0 run. Samantha Meier (Manalapan, N.J. /Manalapan) tallied the first field goal for the Peacocks early in the first quarter followed by a 3-pointer by Marcia Senatus (Roselle, N.J. / Trenton Catholic) and another by Bridget Whitfield. Jamie O'Hare scored the first field goal for the Leopards three minutes into the quarter. Maia Hood of the Leopards was fouled by Meier and made both her free throws, bringing the score to 4-8.
A minute after the timeout, Hala Mostafa (Cairo, Egypt / Modern Narmer Language School) hit a jump shot. Hughes made her first field goal of the game with just a minute and a half left in the first quarter shortly followed by a jump shot by Bethea, ending the quarter 14-8.
Opening the second quarter, a missed jumpshot by Bethea was saved by Hughes. The Leopards worked to close by deficit with a 3-pointer by Anna Ptasinski and a jump shot made by Angela Ribarich. A 3-pointer by Jamie O'Hare brought the deficit to two with six minutes left in the second quarter.
Alyssa Velles (Franklin, Conn. / Norwich Free Academy) of the Peacocks hit a 3-pointer with two minutes left in the quarter, bringing the score to 29-24. The teams went back and forth until the end of the quarter when Sammy Stipa of the Leopards hit a 3-pointer. Lafayette trailed the Peacocks by four at the half.
Maia Hood was fouled by Meier and made both her free throws. Bethea hit a jump shot followed by a 3-pointer by Whitfield, bringing the deficit to eight. O'Hare answered with a 3-pointer.
A steal by Maia Hood and a jump shot by Annette Snow of the Leopards brought the deficit to one. The Leopards had their first lead of the game with five minutes left in the third quarter 41-40 with a layup by Sammy Stipa. Meier retaliated with a field goal and another jump shot shortly after, putting the Peacocks back in the lead. Whitfield hit a 3-pointer with two minutes left in the quarter, bringing the score to 49-44.
O'Hare brought the deficit back to one and a jump shot by Angela Rabarich put the Leopards back in the lead 51-50. A jump shot gave the Leopards a three point lead but Hughes followed with a jump shot bringing the deficit back to one in the first two minutes of the fourth quarter.
With five and a half minutes left, a jump shot by Bethea tied the game at 60-60. Two field goals by H. Ottewill-Soulsby pulled the Leopards up by four. The teams rallied back and forth for the next two minutes until Bethea keyed an 8-0 run in the final quarter, tying the game at 68-68.
Free throws by Ribarich and O'Hare put the Leopards back in the lead, bringing the score to 72-69 with just a few seconds left in the game. The Peacocks had the final possession, but could not convert, solidifying the win for the Leopards.
Jamie O'Hare of the Leopards tallied 22 points, three rebounds, and six assists for the Leopards while H. Ottewill-Soulsby added 12 points and four rebounds. Maia Hood recorded 11 points, ten rebounds, and two assists.
The Peacocks will hosts Canisius in their first Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) game of the season on Friday at 7pm.
