Hounds Hold On for Key Landmark Conference Win Over Susquehanna

BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- The Moravian University women's basketball team saw a 14-point fourth quarter lead disappear before posting a 58-57 victory over visiting Susquehanna University in Johnston Hall Saturday in a key win to start the second half of the conference schedule.

How It Happened

• The River Hawks scored first while senior guard Reganne Flannery hit a jumper to knot the score at 2-2. Susquehanna scored the next seven points to push out to a 9-2 lead. The Hounds answered with an 8-0 run to take a 10-9 lead on a pair of free throws by freshman guard/forward Lizzie Lustig with just over a minute left in the first quarter. Freshman center Grace Steffen drained a late free thrown that had the Blue & Grey up 11-10 after ten minutes of action
• Susquehanna built a 16-13 edge just over two minutes into the second quarter while Moravian ran off six straight points for a 19-16 advantage after sophomore guard Jayda Cartagena sank a jumper. The Hounds held the lead for the rest of the quarter, heading to the locker room up 28-21 after sophomore guard Juliana Vassallo connected on a trio of free throws for the final points of the first half
• Junior forward Brielle Guarente hit two jumpers to open the second half and push the Blue & Grey's advantage into double digits at 32-21. Moravian held the lead for the entire quarter, reaching 13 points on two Steffen free throws with 15 seconds left. The River Hawks hit a pair of late free throws to cut the Greyhounds' edge to 46-35 after 30 minutes of play
• Steffen connected on a three-point play to open the fourth quarter to give Moravian its largest lead of the game at 49-35. Susquehanna scored the next nine points before baskets from senior forward Sam Osorio and Guarente had the Hounds' edge back to nine at 53-44 with just under six minutes remaining. The Greyhounds held a 56-49 lead after an Osorio free throw at the 3:46 mark; however, the River Hawks netted the next seven points to tie the contest at 56-56 with 2:12 remaining. Moravian snapped a 5:17 scoreless stretch when Osorio hit a lay-up on an offensive rebound with 34 seconds to go. Susquehanna made a free throw to cut the Blue & Grey's lead to one, and the River Hawks had a buzzer-beater attempt from in the lane that bounced away to give the Greyhounds the hard-fought victory 

Inside the Numbers

• Moravian had three players in double figures with Osorio registering her fourth double-double of the season and 15th of her career as she posted 15 points and 13 rebounds
• Guarente also tossed in 15 points to go along with five steals and three boards while Cartagena had 13 points and two rebounds
• Steffen finished with six points, eight rebounds and a pair of steals while Flannery contributed four points and four rebounds
• Vassallo had three points, two boards and two blocked shots while Lustig added two points
• The Greyhounds were 19-for-56 from the field, 1-for-12 on three-pointers and 19-for-28 at the charity stripe
• Both squads had 38 rebounds with Moravian holding a 12-10 edge on the offensive glass, and the Blue & Grey also forced Susquehanna into 19 turnovers while only committing 14 miscues

Up Next for the Greyhounds

• Wednesday, January 24 at Goucher College, 7:00 p.m.
• Saturday, January 27 at The Catholic University of America, 4:00 p.m.