Lakewood, N.J.- A pair of free throws from
Ayanda McGill-Jefferson (So.-Lancaster, Pa.) snapped a 62-all stalemate with 52 seconds remaining as visiting Lock Haven University would hang on and escape with a 66-62 road win over Georgian Court University Sunday afternoon in the GCU Wellness Center.
The host-Lions (2-9) won a closely-contested first quarter, 17-16, leading by as many as four points on three separate occasions in the session. The tide would turn in the second stanza as the Bald Eagles (5-4) took the frame, 18-10, to secure a 34-27 advantage heading into intermission.
LHU watched its lead grow to as many as 10 points (37-27) 3:01 into the third before the Lions clawed their way to a 12-5 spurt and cut the deficit to 42-39 with 4:05 remaining in the quarter. The Bald Eagles would soar to a game-high 59-48 surplus with 6:05 left in regulation until a 14-3 GCU sprint knotted the score at 62-62, capped by a dramatic jumper by
Jada Atchison.
"I was very happy with our effort today," shared GCU Head Coach
Jazz Perazic. "We had to go with a shorter lineup in spite of knowing that Lock Haven's biggest strength is their offensive rebounding. We have had much inconsistency in effort since the beginning of the season. We are still trying to get much more effort and energy from our interior players, especially on defense. We just haven't been able to find the best combination of five players with the same level of desire, drive and energy. There are definitely small improvements, but we still have a lot of work to do."
The victors shot a feeble 30.3% (20-for-66) from the floor, but drilled 21 free throws in the win, courtesy of 34 infractions by the Lions.
McGill-Jefferson topped LHU with her 16 points, including a 10-of-18 effort from the charity stripe.
Jalyn Shelton-Burleigh (So.-State College, Pa.) contributed 15 points while
Lysa Mealing (Sr.-Altoona, Pa.) cleared the glass of a game-high 16 rebounds.
Alliyah Berger, for the eighth time this season, topped the Lions in scoring as the senior netted 20 points in the setback. Atchison collected 12 points in the effort while Berger and
Destiny Thompson (3 blocks) collected eight boards apiece.
GCU now breaks until Friday, December 30 when the Lions travel to Division I Binghamton University for a 2:00 p.m. contest.
