Mounties Halt Lions Late Comeback

ERIE, Pa. – Mt. Aloysius women's basketball team had 10 different players score, led by Becky Bard's double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds to defeat Penn State Behrend 69-64 in Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) action on Saturday.

The Mounties (11-6, 9-3 AMCC), currently third in the AMCC, went 9-for-10 from the free-throw line in the final 1:15 to stop the Lions (2-16, 1-11 AMCC) late second-half comeback attempt.

Behrend had three players in double figures. Ally Burke (Erie, PA/Mercyhurst) led all scorers with 20 points and Brianna Bayly (Imperial, PA/West Allegheny) registered 17, followed by Natalie Corso (Moon Township, PA/Moon) with 16.

It was the best shooting percentage from the field for the Lions all season, but Mt. Aloysius only missed three three-throw attempts out of 23 the entire game and held a 49-31 advantage on the glass for the conference win.

Behrend rallied from an 18-point deficit at halftime to just three with 3:21 left in the game. The Lions chipped away at the lead slowly and got within a three-pointer thanks to a triple by Corso and then Burke on back-to-back possessions to make it 58-55.

The teams exchanged buckets to keep it at three and with 1:15 on the clock, the Lions fouled to send the Mounties to the line to get the ball back and control their own destiny.

All but one free-throw was made down the stretch and Burke got her second three-pointer of the game with seven seconds left but Behrend eventually ran out of time.

 What Mt. Aloysius missed from the field (39.1 percent shooting) they made up at the line (87.0 percent shooting).

The Lions return to action on Wednesday at Pitt-Greensburg, beginning at 8 p.m.