Gators Comeback Falls Short

Dec 9, 2003

Trailing by nine points with 2:04 left in the game, the Allegheny College women’s basketball team went on a 9-0 run to fall just short of a comeback win in a 65-62 loss to Bethany College on the road. Senior Jessica Kankoski (Glenshaw, Pa./Fox Chapel) had a season-high 19 points and her desperation three-pointer to tie with two seconds left hit off the rim.

Bethany’s Kelley Richardson led all scorers with 26 points on 10-of-18 shooting and added 11 rebounds. Katie Hardie added 15 point and nine boards for the Bison.

Junior forward Meredith McDonough (Pittsburgh, Pa./Oakland Catholic) had her fourth double-double of the season with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Allegheny shot 37.0 percent in the first half, but came back hitting 14-of-30 shots (46.7) percent in the second half.

Bethany scored the first seven points of the game, but Allegheny responded with the next seven points and tied the game, 7-7, when Kankoski hit a three-pointer with 16:35 left in the first half. The Bisons went on a run over the next three minutes, taking a 16-9 lead, but again the Gators battled back and took their only lead, 17-16, on junior Realynn Miles (McDonald, Pa./Fort Cherry) with 11:20 left in the half. Bethany took over from there, building a 41-28 lead at the half hitting 16-of-32 shots.

Allegheny trailed by 11 with 5:59 left, but cut the lead to 60-55 with 2:54 left on a jumper by McDonough. Bethany seemingly put the game away with a pair of free throws and then a lay-up by Kelley Richardson put the hosts up, 64-55 with 2:04 left.

However, sophomore Caitlin Murtagh (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) hit a pair of free throws and Kankoski followed with a three. McDonough hit a lay-up with 11 seconds left making it a 64-62 game and Bethany’s Nikki Babik hit the front-end of a one-and-one to make it a three-point margin.

Allegheny gathered the rebound on the second attempt and dribbled down court, but Kankoski’s three-point attempt rattled off the rim.

The Gators are off until December 21 and 22 when they travel to Las Vegas, Nev., for the adidas® Division III Shootout featuring Allegheny, St. Benedict, Laverne, and King’s College.

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