The Lancaster Bible College women's basketball team dropped its first home game of 2019 on Saturday, as the Chargers lost to SUNY Cobleskill, 76-67 in double overtime at Horst Athletic Center. The Chargers are now 3-11 overall and 1-4 in North Eastern Athletic Conference play, while the Fighting Tigers improved to 8-5 overall and 2-3 in NEAC play.
 
How it Happened: Lancaster Bible freshman Mekenzie Smith got the Chargers started off well on Saturday, as she scored the first five points for the Chargers. Smith knocked down another jumper with 4:13 remaining in the opening quarter to make it 10-4 in favor of the home team, and a basket by Lizzy Tilton at the 2:47 mark improved the lead to 14-6.
 
The Chargers led 17-10 after 10 minutes of play, but SUNY Cobleskill opened the second quarter on an 8-0 run and took an 18-17 lead 2:28 into the second frame. The teams traded baskets for the majority of the quarter, though Lancaster Bible opened a 29-23 lead on a 3-pointer from Becca Lucente at 2:35. The Fighting Tigers scored the final four points of the half, and the Chargers led, 29-27 after 20 minutes of play.
 
SUNY Cobleskill was the aggressor early in the third quarter, as the Fighting Tigers got to the basket on several straight possessions, and took a 35-31 lead 2:29 into the quarter. The Chargers kept it close, and re-took the lead, 42-41 on a 3-pointer from Caitlin Hickey with 4:01 to play. Smith followed with a 3-pointer of her own, and knocked down another triple two minutes later to give the Chargers a 48-43 lead. A layup from Hickey increased the lead to seven, and the Chargers led, 50-44 after 30 minutes of play.
 
The teams traded baskets early in the fourth quarter, but Gabby Muraczewski's layup with 5:58 to play cut the Chargers' lead to 55-52. Lancaster Bible held a small lead throughout the fourth quarter, but leading by four with 1:50 play, Muraczewski converted a 3-point play to trim the Fighting Tigers' deficit to one, 60-59. After Hope Hodges hit 1-of-2 free throws with under a minute to play, Stacey Sprague was fouled with 11 seconds to play, and hit both free throws to tie the game. The Chargers couldn't get a shot off before the end of regulation, and the teams headed to overtime.
 
The teams went back-and-forth in the first overtime, and though there wasn't much scoring, the Chargers again held a late lead, when Sprague was fouled with six seconds to play. Trailing by one, she made 1-of-2 free throws again, and the teams went to a second overtime, knotted at 66-66.
 
SUNY Cobleskill took control of the second overtime midway through, as the Chargers couldn't convert on the offensive end, while the Fighting Tigers took advantage of their offensive possessions, and build a 74-67 lead after three straight baskets. The Chargers tried to climb back into the contest, but couldn't, and Sprague's layup with 1:07 sealed the victory for the visitors.
 
By the Numbers: The Chargers shot 31.5 percent (23-of-73) from the field, but just 1-of-15 from the floor in the overtime periods…Lancaster Bible was 6-of-25 from 3-point range, and shot just 15-of-31 from the free throw line…The Fighting Tigers shot 34.7 percent (25-of-72) from the field, but were 23-of-35 from the free throw line…Smith finished with a team-high 17 points for the Chargers, and added nine rebounds…Hickey added 16 points, eight rebounds and three blocks…Tilton was the final player in double figures with 14 points, and also added eight boards and four assists…Christine Graves added four points, four rebounds and four blocks…Muraczewski had a game-high 19 points, while teammate Addy Lawson had 15 points, 21 rebounds and four assists.
 
The Coach Says: "Today was a tough result, because I thought we played well overall, but just couldn't finish the game," Lancaster Bible Head Coach Katelyn Vanderhoff said. "Our foul shooting hurt us, but losing the rebounding battle didn't help either. I thought Lizzie and Mekenzie played very well for us today."
 
Information Hodge Podge: Lancaster Bible is now 6-1 all-time against SUNY Cobleskill, as the Chargers lost to the Fighting Tigers for the first time in program history on Saturday…The overtime game was the first for the Chargers since February 21, 2017 when Lancaster Bible defeated Penn St. Abington, 73-70 in double overtime in the NEAC Quarterfinals…The 45 rebounds were the third-most for the Chargers in a game this season…Saturday marked the fourth time this season the Chargers have shot below 50 percent from the free throw line.
 
Up Next: Lancaster Bible is right back on the floor on Sunday as the Chargers host SUNY Poly at 12 p.m.