Box Score

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (November 22, 2008) -- In the third game of the Seven Sisters Classic, Bryn Mawr survived to beat Mount Holyoke 38-35 as Kate Shafir's (Mount Sinai, NY/Mount Sinai) last-second 3-pointer bounced off the right side of the rim. Bryn Mawr won the low scoring game with a dominating performance by Jessica Allen (Reading, PA/Reading), who poured in a game-high 20 points and had 11 rebounds.

The Owls improve to 1-0 on the season, while the Lyons drop to 0-3. Bryn Mawr will take on Smith College at noon on Sunday, while Mt. Holyoke will play host Vassar at 2:00pm.

Bryn Mawr maintained a slim lead for the entire second half, and appeared to have the game in hand after Emilie Naccarato's (Valparaiso, IN/Wheeler) jump shot expanded the lead to 36-31 with a minute and a half left. But Mt. Holyoke came back with an Erin Cain (Quincy, MA/Fontbonne Academy) jumper, followed by a Bryn Mawr offensive foul on the other end, and a Tricia Chase (Feeding Hills, MA/Cathedral) put-back layup to cut the score to 36-35 with 23 seconds to play. Bryn Mawr's Lindsey Darvin (Gladstone, NJ/Bernards) was fouled on the ensuing possession, and held her composure to knock down two free throws for a 38-35 lead that would prove to be the final score.

It was a slow offensive game for both teams, as Bryn Mawr shot 29 per cent from the field on the day, and Mt. Holyoke 21 per cent. Mt. Holyoke turned the ball over 25 times, but kept things close by forcing 27 Bryn Mawr turnovers. The two teams combined to shoot just one for eighteen from the three-point line. Bryn Mawr's three starting forwards towered over the Lyons defenders, but Mt. Holyoke's feisty rebounding gave them a 47-39 edge off the glass.

Neither team had more than a four point lead in the first half, but it was the Jessica Allen show throughout the first frame for Bryn Mawr. After the Owls found themselves down 4-2, Allen scored their next 14 points, and 16 of their next 18, to keep her team ahead 20-18 at the half. Allen netted 8 of her 9 free throws during that stretch. Fellow forward Shanika Bridges-King (Roxbury, MA/English) also grabbed eight first half rebounds and finished the game with four points and 11 rebounds.

Mt. Holyoke stayed in the game with a balanced team effort. They got points from eight different players, led by Cain's 15 points and 7 rebounds. No one else scored more than five points, but six Lyons players had at least 5 rebounds. Chase led the way with 9 boards.