BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- The Moravian College women's basketball team won its sixth straight contest and picked up its first Landmark Conference victory of the 2017-18 season with a 68-59 victory over visiting Susquehanna University in Johnston Hall Saturday.
"It is nice to be at home, and we have to start somewhere so it was nice to get the first conference win today," commented Head Coach Mary Beth Spirk. "Now we just have to continue to go up from here. I thought we started a little sluggish but I thought in the seconds half that we played much better. Again, it wasn't the prettiest of wins but they don't ask you how you won. You just have to get it done and now move onto the next one
The Greyhounds, who are now 11-2 overall and one of six teams in the Landmark Conference at 1-1, had four players in double figures led by sophomore guard Maddie Capuano, who netted 17 points to go with six rebounds and three assists. Graduate student Camille McPherson had 13 points to become the 12th player in school history to reach 1,200 career points, and McPherson added eight rebounds and a pair of assists. Sophomore forward Nadine Ewald had her fifth double-double of the season and the tenth of her career with 13 points and 10 rebounds to go with three steals while senior forward Ciara Stewart added 10 points and eight rebounds in just eight minutes of action.
Senior forward Trista Cunningham had seven rebounds and six points while freshman guard Julia Sirotnak also netted six points to go with five boards. Sophomore guard Karlie Brogan pulled down six rebounds and scored one point while freshman guard Jennifer McClave had four assists and two points in the victory.
The Greyhounds were cold from the field in the first quarter and shot just 31.7 percent from the floor (19-of-60), and the squad connected on just 4-of-11 three-pointers and 26-of-40 free throws in the contest. The Blue and Grey did have a 55-37 advantage in rebounds including 20-8 on the offensive boards,
Ewald scored the opening points of the game with a pair of free throws at the 7:46 mark, and Capuano had the first field goal when she drained a three-pointer for a 5-1 lead with 6:27 left in the first quarter. The Hounds pushed the lead to 11-3 on a jumper by Capuano but the River Hawks answered with a lay-up and two three-pointers to knot the score at 11-11 with just over four minutes left in the period. Susquehanna would eventually pull ahead by a point on two occasions but McClave drained a pair of free throws with five seconds left to give Moravian a 21-18 lead after ten minutes of action.
The Greyhounds would lead the rest of the contest. The advantage in the second quarter reached five points on three occasions before the Blue and Grey headed to the locker room with a 35-31 edge. Ewald had the first three points of the third quarter to stretch the lead to seven points, and Moravian was up ten, 44-34, after a lay-up by Stewart off of an offensive rebound with 3:12 left in the third. The River Hawks beat the buzzer at the end of the quarter to cut the Hounds' advantage to 51-45 after 30 minutes of action.
Susquehanna closed within four points twice in the fourth quarter, the second time at 53-49 with 8:26 left to play. Moravian answered with a 9-0 run as a pair of free throws from McPherson pushed the lead to 62-49 with 5:47 left to play. The River Hawks would get no closer than eight points the rest of the way.
Moravian will continue its season-long eight game home stand with a Landmark Conference contest versus Drew University on Wednesday, January 10 with tip-off set for 7:00 p.m. in Johnston Hall.
