Box Score
The Lehman College women's basketball team (0-1 Overall, 0-0 CUNYAC) began their 2009-2010 season on Friday evening as the Lightning fell to the Panthers of SUNY Purchase (2-0, 1-0 Skyline) on the first day of the NYU Tip-Off Tournament by a score of 68-61 in a game played at New York University. With the loss, the Lightning will play the Mount Saint Vincent Dolphins – who were defeated by the Violets earlier in the evening – in the consolation game of the tourney tomorrow night at 6:00pm.
In the victory for the Panthers, it was Jessie Domes leading the way for her squad with a phenomenal performance as she netted a game-high 25 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists. Domes connected on eight of her 20 attempts from the field and made good on all four of her attempts from the charity stripe. In addition, it was Alyse Lapadula putting forth a nice all-around effort as she scored 15 points, tallied eight rebounds and recorded seven steals. For the evening, the Panthers recorded 17 steals to Lehman's nine, and SUNY Purchase connected on 40 percent of their attempts from three-point range (6-15) while the Lightning made good on just three of 23 shots from beyond the arc (13 percent).
Despite the loss for the Lightning, Lehman College had three players in double figures, including Barbara Febus who scored 10 points (5-10 FG), dished five assists and snatched four rebounds. Senior Kelsey Ash netted 11 points and newcomer Melissa St. Louis posted a double-double with 10 points and 17 rebounds while also dishing three assists. Lehman College out-rebounded the Panthers 55-49, including a 23-16 margin on the offensive glass. Despite the loss, Head Coach Eric Harrison was optimistic with it being so early in the season.
“It was a tough defeat for us tonight, but the girls are still getting used to one another,” Harrison said. “Again, we have a tremendous amount of talent on this squad, and I feel as though once everybody gets on the same page, this can be a real special unit. We had a chance to win tonight's game, and we let it slip through our hands, but we'll learn from this experience and be ready to play tomorrow against Mount Saint Vincent.”
With 6:00 remaining in the game, the Panthers held a 56-47 lead, but the Lightning put forth a spectacular 11-0 run to take a 58-56 lead with 3:22 left in regulation. That run was highlighted by Febus' stellar play, as she netted eight points in that span as momentum appeared to shift back towards Lehman College. The Panthers, however, would storm back, finishing the game on a 12-3 run to stun the Lightning after Lehman had worked diligently to grab the lead.
The Lightning will look to grab their first victory of the season tomorrow evening in the consolation game of the NYU Tip-Off Tournament as Lehman College will battle the Dolphins of Mount Saint Vincent, with game-time at NYU scheduled for 6:00pm.
