Box Score

The Lehman College women's basketball team (18-10 Overall, 10-3 CUNYAC) lost the 2009 Con Edison/CUNYAC women's basketball championship game to Baruch College (23-5 Overall, 13-0 CUNYAC) in heartbreaking fashion on Friday evening, falling to the Bearcats by a score of 64-63 at the City College of New York's Nat Holman Gymnasium in New York, NY. The Lightning, who battled back from a 12-point second half deficit, held a two point lead with under 15 seconds remaining in the game before falling to Baruch by a point. The Bearcats have now taken the championship three times in the last four seasons.

This was the third time this season Baruch defeated Lehman, maintaining a perfect record in conference play and advancing on to the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Tournament. The NCAA will reveal the bracket on Sunday.

The third and final game between the two rivals was an instant classic. The game featured a little bit of everything, including excitement, come-from-behind heroics, controversy, and a shot at the buzzer that would determine 2009's champion. Both teams put forth phenomenal efforts and left everything that they had on the court.

Baruch's Karlee Whipple nailed a three-pointer from the wing with 14 seconds remaining in the contest, a shot that proved to be the game-winner. The bucket was originally called a two-point shot, and play continued as Lehman College senior Sally Nnamani drove down the court and was fouled on a shot with 6.4 seconds left, prompting Baruch Head Coach Machli Joseph to call a timeout. During the timeout, it was announced that the previous shot by Whipple was under video review. After a lengthy six to eight minute delay, the shot was ruled a three-pointer, giving Baruch a 64-63 lead.

Following the timeout, Lehman had two opportunities to win the game, but Nnamani misfired on two free throw attempts. The second missed free throw came off the rim and went out of bounds off of a Baruch player, leaving 5.2 seconds left on the clock. The ball was then in-bounded to Nnamani who misfired on a shot from the free throw line at the buzzer, ending the classic contest. Following the game, Harrison gave his thoughts on the reversal of the Whipple shot as well as his players' efforts on the evening.

“Following the timeout, we discussed and planned strategies that we normally would under a circumstance in which a player would be at the line in a tie game with five seconds to play,” Harrison said. “So during the timeout, we were of the mindset that Sally Nnamani would shoot two free throws, and worst case scenario, if she misses both, we trust our defense to make a stop and send the game to overtime. Instead, the call gets reversed after what seemed like a six to eight minute delay and all of a sudden the entire complexion of the game changes. I wasn't happy with that. Our players, however, left it all on the court. They showed heart, character, and grit. I couldn't be more proud of all of them.”

In a game that featured arguably the two best women's basketball players in the conference, it was the supporting casts that stepped into the limelight in the first half.  For Baruch, sophomore guard Monique Salmon netted 14 points in the first half and finished with 20 points on the evening. Senior Kalea Davis did her part, scoring 11 points and snatching 13 rebounds.

For the Lightning, senior standout Whittney Barnes turned in a monster effort for the second consecutive postseason contest, scoring easily down in the paint and having her way all evening long as she scored a game-high 27 points while grabbing 16 rebounds. Nnamani finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds, and junior Tonisha Kirby added 10 points, four assists, and four steals.

Rounding out the season 18-10, the Lightning still have opportunities for further postseason play. While gaining an at-large bid into the NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament seems a long shot, Lehman should qualify for the ECAC Metro NY/NJ Postseason Basketball Tournament. Selection announcements for the ECAC will be made on Monday afternoon with opening round competition slated for Wednesday, March 4.