CHESTER, Pa. (Jan. 2, 2016) – Playing its third game over the last four days, the Widener University women's basketball team fell to Lycoming by a 61-54 decision in Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth action on Saturday afternoon at the Schwartz Center.
 
Lycoming (8-4, MAC Commonwealth 3-1) opened the game with 10 unanswered points and never looked back. The Warriors used a balanced attack with four different scorers to seize an early lead before Jenn Grove drove in for a layup to make it 14-2 with 2:37 left in the first quarter. Chelsea Henderson then stole the ball and made a layup that beat the buzzer to give the visitors a 16-4 commanding advantage at the end of the frame.
 
Sparked by freshman Tasjah Davis (Hebron, Md.), who set a career high for scoring, Widener started to find some rhythm offensively in the second quarter. Davis cut through for a layup on the first possession and sank another three field goals in the stanza, which was capped by finishing a pass from senior Ally Ferrucci (Vineland, N.J.) to cut the deficit to 29-17. Brianna Cullen gave the Pride more momentum by putting back a missed shot as the buzzer sounded and sinking the ensuing free throw to create a 30-21 score at the break.
 
Widener (9-3, MAC Commonwealth 2-1) came out with a vengeance in the second half and slashed the margin all the way down to four with a strong finish. Senior Sarah Engman (Havertown, Pa.) led the hosts during the run by sinking four free throws, and Ferrucci converted a layup in transition in the waning seconds to cap an 8-2 run and make it 41-37.
 
But Lycoming would not allow the Pride to come any closer the rest of the way, as Shelby Mueller made two free throws to begin the fourth before Henderson drilled two of her own at the stripe to push the Warrior lead back up to double figures. Sophomores Julia Venturelli (Bridgewater, N.J.) and Allison Gallagher each drained shots from beyond the arc down the stretch to bring the margin down to five on two occasions, but the Warriors got a key layup from Henderson on an inbounds play and got some free throws for insurance in the final seconds to escape with the win.
 
Ferrucci fell just shy of a double-double with 14 points and eight assists to go along with four steals, while Gallagher also reached twin figures with 10 points to lead the way for Widener. Davis added a career-high nine by shooting 4-of-6 from the field and sinking her only attempt from long range in the first half.
 
Henderson and Grove finished with 15 points apiece to lead the way for Lycoming. Grove also contribured seven rebounds and three steals, while Henderson had eight boards and five steals. Mueller had four swipes and 11 points.
 
Widener will face arguably its toughest test of the season to date when it visits nationally-ranked Albright on Wednesday, Jan. 6 at 6:00 p.m.