Pleasantville, N.Y. (January 12) -- Despite 17 points by sophomore guard Epiphany Smith (Springdale, Ark.), the Saint Anselm women's basketball team dropped a 55-47 final to Pace University on Tuesday night in NE-10 Conference play at the Goldstein Athletic Center.

In the first half, the two teams started off slow and the Hawks held a 21-16 lead with 3:53 left following a pair of free throws by Smith. After the Setters took a 22-21 halftime lead, Pace put up an 11-4 run and expanded that lead to eight with 13:01 left in the game on a pair of free throws by Taylor Losey. For the remainder of the second period, the Setters held at least a four-point lead on the way to the eight-point Pace win.

Smith was the lone Hawk in double figures, while sophomore Megan Howard (St. Paul, Minn.) nearly had a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds. Losey led all scorers for Pace with 26 points, including 8-for-8 at the free throw line.

With the loss, Saint Anselm falls to 6-8 overall and 3-7 in league play. On the other side, Pace improves to 10-5 overall and 7-3 in Northeast-10 action. Saint Anselm is back in action on Saturday, hosting Saint Rose for a 1:30 start.