The Lancaster Bible College women's basketball team dropped its second straight close game, and fourth overall on Friday night, as the Chargers lost NEAC South Division leading Penn St. Abington, 73-67 in Abington, Pa. The Chargers fell to 3-14 overall this season and 1-7 in North Eastern Athletic Conference play, while the Nittany Lions improved to 8-7 overall and 5-2 in NEAC action.
 
How it Happened: Lancaster Bible raced out to a 9-2 lead, as Caitlin Hickey scored seven of the Chargers' first nine points. Lizzy Tilton knocked down a 3-pointer a few moments later to give the Chargers a 14-7 advantage, and Lancaster Bible held a 22-19 lead after 10 minutes of play.
 
The Chargers' lead shrank to one early in the second quarter, but Lancaster Bible rebuilt it to double digits, 33-23, after two free throws from Courtney Goyak with 6:42 remaining in the first half. The points would be the last for the Chargers for over four minutes, as Penn St. Abington used an 11-0 run to take a 34-33 lead. The Nittany Lions maintained their one-point lead through halftime, and the Chargers re-took the lead, 39-38 early in the third quarter.
 
The teams battled back-and-forth throughout the third quarter, as the Chargers continued to play in the third quarter of games over the past few weeks, after having trouble with the third frame during the first third of the season. The Nittany Lions used a late 6-0 run to grab a 55-50 lead after 30 minutes of play, as the Chargers stayed within striking distance.
 
Lancaster Bible held Penn St. Abington off the scoreboard over the first four minutes of the final quarter, and buckets from Goyak and Mekenzie Smith brought the Chargers to within one, 55-54 with 6:19 to play. Later in the quarter, Goyak knocked down two more free throws to trim Lancaster Bible's deficit to, 61-59, but the Chargers  could get no closer, as the Nittany Lions knocked down two 3-pointers, and then converted late free throws to preserve the win.
 
By the Numbers: Lancaster Bible shot 41.2 percent (21-of-51) from the floor, including 6-of-16 from 3-point range…The Chargers were 19-of-26 from the free throw line…The Nittany Lions shot 47.8 percent (22-of-46) from the field, and 9-of-19 from beyond the arc…Penn St. Abington was 20-of-26 from the free throw line, as the teams combined to shoot 52 free throws…Hickey finished with a team-high 20 points, while Goyak had 13 points and 11 rebounds…Tilton added 12 points and five boards, while Becca Lucente finished in double figures for the second straight game with 11 points…Shayna Rodriguez posted a game-high 29 points on 9-of-14 shooting to pace the Nittany Lions.
 
The Coach Says: "I thought we played well for about 35 minutes today," Lancaster Bible Head Coach Katelyn Vanderhoff said. "We had some mental errors down the stretch and they capitalized on that. Overall I am proud of the way we competed and that we didn't shy away from the moment."
 
Information Hodge Podge: Lancaster Bible is now 15-7 all-time against Penn St. Abington…The Nittany Lions defeated the Chargers in the NEAC Quarterfinals last season…The 19 made free throws were a season-high for the Chargers…Lancaster Bible had just three steals, tied for the second-lowest mark of the season…The Chargers are 1-5 on the road this season…Lancaster Bible is outscoring opponents, 263-253 in the first quarter of games this season, but is being outscored by 114 in the next three quarters combined.
 
Up Next: Lancaster Bible travels to Morristown, N.J. on Wednesday to face St. Elizabeth at 5 p.m.