UNION, N.J. --- Juniors guard Maddie Capuano and forward Nadine Ewald combined for 50 points and helped the Moravian College women's basketball team rally in the fourth quarter for a 69-63 win over The University of Lynchburg (Va.) in the opening round of the Kean (N.J.) University Classic Friday evening.
The Greyhounds, now 3-0 on the season, trailed by seven points early in the fourth quarter Capuano connected on two of her five three-pointers to start an 11-0 run to give Moravian the lead for good. Capuano finished with 30 points, her second straight contest with at least 30 points, and she added five steals, four rebounds and three assists while Ewald had 20 points, three rebounds and three assists.
Junior guard Karlie Brogan tossed in 10 points to go with a team-high nine rebounds, two assists and a pair of steals while sophomore guard Jennifer McClave had four points, four assists and three boards. Junior guard Emily Walls had four rebounds and three points in her first career start while sophomore forward Jordan Beneducci added two points and two rebounds and senior forward Ariana Caiati had a pair of assists.
The Greyhounds were 25-of-64 from the floor and 7-of-20 beyond the three-point line, and the Hounds were 12-of-16 at the foul line while the Hornets went just 6-for-9 at the charity stripe. Moravian did force Lynchburg into 20 turnovers while making just 13 miscues.
Ewald opened the scoring before Lynchburg ran off six straight points. Moravian answered and took a 9-8 lead on a lay-up from McClave with 6:50 left in the opening period. The Hornets moved back in front before Ewald gave the Blue and Grey a 14-13 late in the first quarter. Lynchburg added one more basket to lead 15-14 after 10 minutes of action.
Both teams struggled shooting the ball in the second quarter, combining for just 17 points with Moravian scoring 11. Walls hit a three-pointer at the 3:16 mark to give the Hounds a 23-21 lead and a steal and lay-up by Capuano 20 seconds later had the Greyhounds leading 25-21, and that would be the halftime score.
The third quarter saw Moravian leading, or the score tied until the Hornets took a 36-35 lead with 4:36 left in the third period. The Blue and Grey trailed by as many as five points before two baskets by Capuano closed the gap within a point. Ewald added a jumper with six seconds left in the third quarter as Moravian trailed 48-47 after 30 minutes of action.
Lynchburg started to pull away early in the fourth quarter, pushing its lead to 54-47. The Hornets were still leading 56-49 when Capuano hit her back-to-back three-pointers. Ewald gave the Hounds the lead for good with a jumper, and Capuano added another steal and lay-up for a 59-56 lead with 4:01 remaining. Lynchburg closed within a point before another three-pointer by Capuano. Brogan added three free throws and Capuano connected on one shot from the charity stripe to ice the victory for the Greyhounds.
Moravian will play in the championship game of the Kean Classic on Saturday, November 17 at 2:00 p.m. versus Eastern University, who won Friday's second game, 62-53, over the host Cougars.
