(boxscore)
Despite another double-double from freshman Casey Pritz (Abington, PA),Widener let a 15-point first-half lead slip away and gave up the final 12 points in a crushing 72-65 Commonwealth Conference loss at Elizabethtown.
Pritz converted a three-point play with 3:01 left to give Widener a 65-60 cushion. Elizabethtown began to chip away with 2:41 remaining as Teanna Ziegler hit a layup for a 65-62 contest.
Things went from bad to worse on the Blue Jays' next possession with Megan Romano making a layup as Pritz was whistled for her fifth foul. Romano completed a three-point play with 1:58 to play for a 65-65 tie.
Romano was there again on the next possession, rebounding a missed layup and hitting one on the other end for the Blue Jays' first lead at 67-65 with 1:31 left.
Romano buried a jumper with 38 seconds to play for a 69-65 lead and Megan Quinn hit 1-of-2 from the stripe 11 seconds later for a five-point margin. Widener (10-6, 1-2 CC) could not convert on its end and Romano's two free throws with five seconds left ended the scoring.
The Pride wasted other solid effort by Pritz, who totaled 18 points and 10 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season. Beth Dessart Mager (Newtown Square, PA) had 13 points and eight rebounds, fellow senior Barbara Fleming (Philadelphia, PA) scored 12 and junior Becky Tyler (Wynnewood, PA) contributed 11 and seven rebounds.
Widener, which held a 30-15 lead with 8:12 left in the first half, shot 34 percent (24-of-70) overall and only 27 percent (11-of-41) in the second half.
Quinn had 23 points and 10 rebounds, Romano scored 15 of her 17 points in the second half and Ali Jury amassed nine points, seven rebounds and eight of the 12 blocked shots for Elizabethtown (8-6, 2-2 CC). The home team shot 50 percent (15-of-30) from the field in the second half and 13-for-15 from the line.
Widener is home Tuesday against Arcadia at 6:00 pm. Fans attending the doubleheader with the men's team are asked to bring a canned good or make a donation to City Team Ministries. It also is our “Gold Rush” on Widener Pride Day, with all from the University in attendance receiving a gold t-shirt.
