Bronxville, N.Y.-  A season-best 31 points from Georgian Court scoring-sensation Alliyah Berger, accompanied by a dazzling double-double of 16 points and 16 assists by teammate Destiny Thompson, proved to be all for naught Wednesday evening as the Lions suffered a gut-wrenching 77-72 defeat at the hands of host-Concordia College in CACC women's hoops action.

In a contest that marked the first of the new year for both squads, GCU (2-11, 0-7 CACC) and the Clippers (4-10, 4-2 CACC) battled in a closely-contested opening quarter with the home team owning a 19-16 lead after the initial ten minutes of action. The visiting Lions opened the second session on a 11-5 tear, building a 27-21 advantage with 6:03 remaining before intermission.   

The tide turned quickly in favor of Concordia as the Clippers set sail on a 13-0 run to take a 34-27 with 26 seconds left in the half. A Berger jumper at the 5:41 mark of the third period placed GCU to within one point (36-35) of its conference foe before Concordia would conclud the frame with a 16-9 run and a 52-44 lead.

The eventually-victorious sailing vessels compiled a high-water mark of 13 points when a pair of free throws from Jessica Rosalbo (Sr.-Staten Island, N.Y.) put Concordia ahead, 67-54, with 4:01 remaining. GCU would not make things easy for its opponent as a thrilling 19-5 charge would slice the deficit to 73-72 with only 0:18 left in regulation. Four free throws would account for the Clippers' remaining tallies to secure the sinking of the Lions.

"We must continue to get better," stated GCU head Coach Jazz Perazic after the difficult defeat. "We must stop beating ourselves by giving the ball away. The best thing that we have going for us now is that we have a game on Saturday. We will continue to try to find answers, we are a much better team than our results are showing."

Berger drilled 9-of-18 field goal attempts for the Lions, including a sensational 6-of-10 from three-point land. The senior also nailed 7-of-9 free throw efforts. Thompson went 8-for-17 from the floor while grabbing 12 defensive boards and stuffing three Concordia shots in the outing.

Jaelyn Tweedy contributed 14 points for Georgian Court, complementing her five steals and assists, in 40 minutes of action.

Rosalbo's 19 points topped the Concordia roster, one of which marked the 1,000th point of the senior's collegiate career. Julianne Wilkinson (Jr.-Red Hook, N.Y.) followed with 16 points of her own while Amiya Rankins (Fr.-Somerset, N.J.) poured in 15. Hadiyah Black (Jr.-Brooklyn, N.Y.) authored a double-double consisting of 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Georgian Court remains on the road as the Lions trek to Post University this Saturday for a 1:00 p.m. tip-off.