The Lancaster Bible College women's basketball team snapped its six-game losing streak on Wednesday night, defeating Hood, 67-52 in Frederick, Md. for the Chargers' first win of the season. The Chargers head into to Christmas Break with a 1-6 overall record, while the Blazers dropped to 4-4 overall with the loss.
 
How it Happened: Lancaster Bible senior Caitlin Hickey scored eight of the team's first 10 points, and the Chargers led, 10-3 after seven minutes of play. Back-to-back baskets from Paige Towne and Jordyn Beers extended Lancaster Bible's lead to 14-3 with 2:15 remaining in the opening quarter, but Hood responded late, and the Chargers led just 16-10 after 10 minutes of play.
 
The Chargers dominated the second quarter, scoring the first seven points of the frame. Lizzy Tilton capped the early run with a 3-pointer, and Lancaster Bible took its largest lead of the first half on two different occasions at 16 points, as Hickey knocked down a jumper with three seconds remaining in the half to give the Chargers a 38-22 advantage at the break.
 
Lancaster Bible continued to roll in the third quarter, as Alaysha Iwais' jumper 4:09 into the frame gave the Chargers a 45-25 lead. Mikayla Via's 3-pointer with 1:55 to play in the third opened up Lancaster Bible's largest lead to that point at 52-29, and the Chargers led by 20 after three quarters.
 
The Chargers took a 25-point lead early in the fourth quarter on a layup from Christine Graves, and though the Blazers finally solved the Lancaster Bible defense, and cut the deficit to 12 with under a minute to play, the Chargers were never threatened, and hit free throws down the stretch to seal their first win of the season.
 
Statistically Speaking: Lancaster Bible shot 40.3 percent (25-of-62) from the field, and 30.8 percent (4-of-13) from 3-point range…Hood shot just 25 percent (17-of-68) from the floor, and 23.1 percent (6-of-26) from beyond the arc…Lancaster Bible dominated inside, outscoring the Blazers, 28-16 in the paint…Hickey led all scorers with 22 points, and also added six rebounds and two steals…Tilton had 14 points, five assists and three boards…Iwais posted seven points and three rebounds, while Graves added six points, nine rebounds, five assists, two steals, and two blocks…Via had eight points and four rebounds as well for the Chargers…Lauren Keeney had a team-high 16 points for Hood.
 
The Coach Says: "I'm so proud of this team," Lancaster Bible Head Coach Katelyn Vanderhoff said. "The start of the season hasn't been what we envisioned, but they have kept fighting, and these last two days of practice have been the most focused the team has been, and that was a great lead in to today."
 
More on Wednesday's Win: "We did all of the little things well, setting good screens, coming off of them with purpose, and crashing the boards," Vanderhoff said. "Hickey played great tonight, and let the game come to her, while finding her spots for success on the floor. I'm so proud of the team, and glad we could head into Christmas Break with a win."
 
News & Notes: Lancaster Bible is now 3-8 all-time against Hood…The Chargers lost to the Blazers, 81-74 last season in Lancaster…Hood is now 2-3 at home this season, while the Chargers improved to 1-5 away from home this year…Wednesday was the first time all season the Chargers have shot better than 40 percent from the floor…Lancaster Bible's 13 made free throws on Wednesday tied a season-high, and the 67 points scored were the third time this year the Chargers have posted 63 points or more…Hickey has 1,546 career points heading into her final semester of play, the third-most in program history, and just 41 points behind Katy Stover ('16) who capped her collegiate career with 1,587 points.
 
Up Next: Lancaster Bible is off until 2020, and the Chargers will begin the new year on January 2 at Cedar Crest, with tip-off set for 6 p.m.