WILMINGTON, DE (Jan. 22, 2025) - Georgian Court Women's Basketball built a large lead Wednesday night and held on for a tight 68-63 win over Goldey-Beacom. The Lions hit some late free throws to seal the game and improve to 3-4 in CACC play.

How it Happened
• For the second straight game, GCU shot better than 50% from the floor hitting 52.3% overall. GBC connected at a 40.7% clip.
• The Lions were also keyed in from behind the arc hitting 5-10. Goldey-Beacom was also shooting well from three hitting 8-19.
• Georgian Court took advantage at the free throw line where they hit 17-22 while the Lightning were just 11-16.
• Rebounding was strong for the Lions who outrebounded GBC 36-21. That included 12 offensive rebounds which the Lions used to score 16 second-chance points.
• Georgian Court still turned the ball over 25 times, which led to 23 Lightning points, but the Lions turned 23 Lightning giveaways into 20 points of their own.
1st Quarter
• Things started slow in the first quarter with each team feeling each other out.
• Neither held a large in the quarter.
• Julia Whesper's transition layup made it a 13-9 lead with less than 20 seconds to play, but the Lightning connected at the buzzer and it was a two-point game, 13-11, after 10 minutes.
2nd Quarter
• The second is where the Lions really took off.
• Samantha Jones started it with a three-ball and GCU was off and running.
• They continued to pad the lead and a Niyell McCargo jumper gave the Lions their largest lead, 37-20, with 1:11 left in the half.
• Over that final 70 seconds though, the Lightning chipped away at the lead.
• GBC outscored the Lions 6-0 over the final minute, going 4-4 at the foul line, and the Lions lead was 11, 37-26 at the half.
• The Lions scored 24 in the quarter going 10-13 from the field and 3-4 from three-point-land.
3rd Quarter
• Georgian Court was able to push the lead back to 15 thanks to a McCargo free throw and an Alexi Hoy three-pointer early in the second half.
• Goldey-Beacom got back on track though and three straight threes brought the lead down to 10.
• The Lightning continued to claw back and again hit a late shot, this time a three-pointer, and the Lions lead was just three after three, 52-49.
• Goldey-Beacom was 4-6 from behind the arc in the third.
4th Quarter
• It was all hands on deck in a wild fourth quarter that saw Goldey-Beacom get to within one three times, but never tie or take the lead.
• It started with a Lightning layup on the first possession of the period, but McCargo answered with a jumper.
• McCargo and Tyra Lovelock combined to expand the lead to six, 57-51, in the first 100 seconds.
• Back-to-back Lightning baskets brought it back dow to one with 6:19 remaining, but GCU went 3-4 at the foul line to again make it a two-possession game.
• With the Lions back up six, GBC scored five straight and with 2:48 to play it was a slim 64-63 Lion lead.
• Georgian Court's defense tightened though and GCU was 0-5 the rest of the way.
• The Lions went 4-6 at the free throw line down the stretch and hung on for a 68-63 win.

Lion Stat Leaders
• Jade Dickson recorded a double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds, going 8-11 from the field.
• Niyell McCargo chipped in 12 points making 6-7 at the free throw line.
• Alexi Hoy was 4-7 overall, 2-3 from three for 11 points with three assists.
• Samantha Jones added 11 points on 4-8 shooting.

For the Lightning
• Julie Kulesza scored a team-high 14 points.
• Lydia Betz scored 13 with six boards.
• Rory Ciszkowski was 3-6 from behind the arc and scored nine points.

News and Notes
• Samantha Jones scored her 200th career point.
• Niyell McCargo surpassed 1000 career minutes played.
• Georgian Court's +15 rebound margin was their highest of the season.
• The last time Georgian Court shot 50% in back-to-back games came right around this time five years ago. January 22 and 26, 2019 against Holy Family and Bloomfield.

Up Next
• Georgian Court is back home Saturday, Jan. 25 for alumni and sponsors day. They'll host Dominican beginning at 12 pm.