CHESTER, Pa. (Feb. 3, 2016) – Lexie Lantz corralled a missed shot and made a layup with 8.7 seconds remaining to help lift Lebanon Valley to a 67-64 victory over the Widener University women's basketball team on Wednesday evening at the Schwartz Center.
 
In a game that came down to the wire, sophomore Allison Gallagher (Souderton, Pa.) gave Widener a 64-63 lead with 23 seconds left by converting a shot off a nifty spin move. The Dutchwomen then had their opportunity to win the game and appeared at first like they would come up just short when Peyton Carper's shot bounced out, but Lantz was there for the putback to make it 65-64.
 
Widener had a chance to win the game on its next possession by electing to go down low to Wylie. The senior, however, could not handle the pass inside and the visitors got two free throws from Bridget Rothert at the other end to go ahead 67-64. A 3-point attempt by sophomore Nikki Petri (Congers, N.Y.) bounced off the back of the rim, allowing Lebanon Valley to escape with the three-point win.
 
The Pride got off to a quick start and led for most of the first quarter. Julia Venturelli (Bridgewater, N.J.) knocked down three shots, including one from downtown to give the hosts an 18-15 advantage after the first quarter.
 
Lebanon Valley (13-7, MAC Commonwealth 7-4), however, caught fire and outscored the hosts by a 20-4 margin in the second frame to go into halftime ahead by double figures. After Aly Furgiele (Norwalk, Conn.) made a layup to open the scoring, the Dutchwomen scored 18 unanswered to turn the tide. Kiely Chaklos canned a trey to put the visitors ahead and scored an additional five points during the stretch to put her team in control by a 35-22 score at the break.
 
Despite struggling in the second quarter, Widener came out strong in the second half and slashed the deficit down to five with 1:37 left in the third when Petri finished a 3-point play the old-fashioned way and made it a one-possession game when Wylie put back a missed shot to make it 57-54 with 4:28 left. The Pride kept fighting and went ahead for the first time in the half when Gallagher sank a clutch basket in transition, but Lantz would come through with the biggest rebound and shot of the game to give the Dutchwomen the thrilling victory.
 
Wylie posted a double-double with 17 points and 11 boards to lead the way for Widener in the losing effort. Gallagher finished with 15 points and seven rebounds to go along with three steals, while senior Ally Ferrucci dished out eight assists and scored seven points.
 
Chaklos scored a game-high 20 points for Lebanon Valley by shooting a blistering 8-of-10 from the field, including 2-of-3 from long range, and 2-of-6 from the line. The Dutchwomen also had a commanding 32-13 advantage in bench points and most notably got 14 and 12 points, respectively, from Rothert and Lantz in reserve roles. Rothert also added seven rebounds.
 
Widener (12-9, MAC Commonwealth 5-7) will look to remain in playoff contention when it visits Stevenson on Saturday, Feb. 6 at 3:00 p.m.