PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. – Senior Tori Lehr (Cohasset, Mass.) scored a game-high 16 points to lead the Saint Anselm College women's basketball team to a 61-52 win against Pace University on Saturday afternoon at the Goldstein Fitness Center.
The Hawks, who have won six of their last nine, improve to 10-7 on the season, including 6-6 in Northeast-10 play, while the Setters dip to 3-13, 2-8 NE-10.
Lehr shot 6-for-14 from the floor and was a perfect 4-for-4 at the line, while grabbing seven rebounds. Freshman Candace Andrews (Boston, Mass.) netted 14 points (5-14 FG; 4-8 FT) and tallied five rebounds and three assists. Senior Briana Jones (White Plains, N.Y.) was also in double figures with 10 points (10-12 FT) to go along with four rebounds.
Margo Hackett and Shanice Maynard each paced the Setters with 14 points.
The Hawks led 8-7 early on when a Maynard jumper and Hackett three-point play moved Pace into the lead at 12-8 just 4:21 into the contest. After a pair of Jones free throws pulled the Hawks back within two, a 7-2 spurt from the Setters opened up their largest lead of the contest at 19-12 with 11:29 remaining in the opening half.
Saint Anselm responded with a 10-3 run that featured four points each from seniors Meg Morrissey (So. Kingstown, R.I.) and Kierra Moore (Albany, N.Y.) to knot the game at 22 with 4:24 left. Maynard stopped the bleeding with a 3-pointer and Hackett dropped in a pair of free throws to put Pace back in front at 27-22 with 3:41 to go.
After the Hawks pulled within a pair, Pace nudged the lead to six before Andrews scored five of the last eight points of the half to cut the deficit to 33-30 at the break.
Saint Anselm came out of the locker room on fire as it scored 13 consecutive points, including six from Lehr and five from Morrissey, to grab a 43-33 advantage 5:39 into the second half. With the margin still 10 later in the half, a 5-0 spurt from Pace cut the deficit in half, but the Hawks hit back with a 5-0 counter run that made it 50-40 with 7:21 to go.
After the teams traded scores, treys from Maynard and Hackett pulled Pace within 52-48 with 5:26 left, but Saint Anselm again had the answer as three Jones free throws helped fuel a 6-0 run that sealed the win and put it back in front by 10 at 58-48 with 1:29 remaining.
Morrissey finished with nine points (3-6 FG; 3-3 FT), four assists and a pair of rebounds, while senior Allie Jones (So. Kingstown, R.I.) posted seven points (3-7 FG; 1-3 FT), four boards, two assists and two steals. Moore chipped in four points (1-1 FG; 2-4 FT), seven rebounds and four swipes.
Saint Anselm outshot Pace, 36 percent (18-50) to 28.1 percent (16-57), and held the Setters to just 20.7 percent shooting (6-29) in the second half. Despite an 8-for-17 (47.1%) performance from beyond the arc by the Setters, the Hawks were able to persevere thanks in large part to a +13 advantage in free throws (25-12). Saint Anselm dominated the paint (28-6), held a slight edge on the glass (42-41) and turned it over one fewer time (13) than Pace (14).
The Hawks return to action Wednesday, Jan. 22 at 5 p.m. when they travel to take on Le Moyne College. The next home game for the Hawks is Wednesday, Feb. 5 at 7 p.m. when they play host to crosstown-rival Southern New Hampshire University at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium. Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department by liking us on Facebook and following us on Twitter @STAHawks.
