(box score)
Widener squandered a golden opportunity for an historic victory at Messiah, watching a 13-point lead disintegrate in a 51-49 Commonwealth Conference loss in Grantham, PA.
Widener held Messiah off the scoreboard for over eight minutes, using a 12-0 run to take a 14-4 lead with 11:09 left in the first half. Kate Dellinger (Wrightsville, PA) scored four points in that run with fellow sophomore Lil Carney (Narberth, PA) and freshman Joanna Persiano (Ventnor, NJ) each adding a 3-pointer.
The Pride owned a 27-16 halftime lead by holding the Falcons to a mere 25 percent shooting (6-of-24). Dellinger had 10 points and eight rebounds in the half with Carney adding eight and four for Widener, which had a 25-15 rebounding edge.
The Falcons began their comeback in earnest, netting 10 straight points to close to 31-30 with 11:33 left. Kira Maier and Michele Schleich each scored four points in that span for the Falcons, who trailed by as much as 27-14 late in the first half.
Maier drilled two free throws with 2:50 remaining to give the Falcons a 47-43 lead. Sophomore Vanessa Hejnas (Delran, NJ) kept the Pride in it, getting an old-fashioned three-point play with 2:39 to go for a one-point contest.
Momentum stayed with the Pride as Hejnas drilled 1-of-2 from the line with 1:32 remaining for a 47-47 tie. After Taylor Miller missed a layup for the Falcons, Persiano hit a crucial layup with 34 seconds left to give the Pride a 49-47 lead.
But then came the backbreaker. Dori Gyori missed a shot for Messiah and the offensive rebound was corralled by Schleich, who passed to Miller outside the arc. Miller took a shot, but was fouled by Carney that led to three free throws.
Miller, who was 0-for-3 from the line and 2-of-14 from the floor at this point, calmly hit all three attempts from the stripe with 23 seconds left for a 50-49 Messiah cushion.
Widener looked for the win, but Dellinger's jumper bounced off the iron with 3.8 seconds left. Schleich hit 1-of-2 from the line for a 51-49 game and the inbounds pass from Widener went awry for the final.
Dellinger had 15 points and 10 rebounds for her fifth double-double of the season and fourth in the last six games. Carney and Persiano scored 12 points apiece for the Pride, who shot only 32 percent (8-of-25) in the second half and 35 percent (19-of-54) overall.
Widener was denied its first two-game sweep of Messiah and its first regular-season victory in Grantham. The Pride defeated the Falcons in Brubaker Auditorium in the 2004 and 2009 conference semifinals en route to the league crown.
Schleich had 15 points and 10 rebounds, including 11 and six in the second half for Messiah, who shot a mere 31 percent (15-of-48) from the floor and 1-of-13 from beyond the arc. Gyori closed with 10 points and eight rebounds for the Falcons, who outscored the Pride 35-22 in the second half.
Free throw shooting also played a key role with Messiah going 20-for-32 and Widener finishing 7-for-14.
Messiah (12-6, 6-2 CC) grabbed sole possession of second place from Widener (14-5, 5-3), which sits one game ahead of Alvernia (4-4) for third.
Widener on Wednesday hosts Albright at 6:00 pm. The team also will take part in the celebration of National Girls and Women in Sports Day.
