The Bulldogs (16-9, 8-6 Freedom) were terrific in the first half controlling all 20 minutes and led by as many as 26 points, 41-15, with 5:18 left. DSU shot 54.5 percent and canned 7-of-12 three-pointers (58.3 percent) to take a 46-24 lead into the locker room.
Sophomore LeighAnn Burke was the catalyst totaling 20 first-half tallies on 8-of-12 shooting, while fellow sophomore Erica Sovak added 11 points.
The second half was the complete opposite as the Bulldogs tried to hold onto to its lead but were unable as seniors Allison Matt and Casey Thran each had 16 points in the second half to lead a big comeback that ended with the visitor’s taking home a 78-71 win.
The tide seemed to turn around the 12-minute mark after the Lady Royals had chipped away at the lead and still trailed by 16 points, 58-42, with 12:03 to go. A 9-0 run cut the lead down to seven points and UofS’s confidence seemed to grow as the momentum shifted off the Bulldogs bench.
The lead fell to three points, 64-61, with 5:13 left but sophomore Kim Rarick answered with a lay-up plus one to make it a 67-61 game. Thran took over during the next minute scoring six points as a 7-0 run gave Scranton its first lead of the game at 68-67 with 2:34 to play.
A three-point play from senior Taryn Mellody pushed the lead to four points and Matt added four straight points before one free throw from junior Stephanie Remington to give Scranton a 75-70 lead with 40 ticks left, sealing the Bulldogs upset bid.
Burke finished with 24 points on 9-of-18 shooting including five three-pointers to lead the Bulldogs in the loss. Rarick added 19 points, tying her career-high and Sovak totaled 12 points. Senior Kirby Lutz finished with four points and eight rebounds in her last regular season home game, while freshman Caitlin Miller had a strong game off the bench with seven points and 11 rebounds.
Matt finished with a game-high 25 points on 11-of-23 shooting and added six assists and five steals. Mellody totaled 18 points and Thran scored all 16 of her points in the second half. Senior Tiffaney Williams finished with eight points, 12 rebounds and five blocks for the Lady Royals.
Despite the loss DeSales finishes the regular season as the #3 seed and will travel to King’s College in the first round of the Freedom Conference playoffs on Wednesday, February 21st beginning at 6:00 pm. Scranton earns the top spot and will host the #4 seed, Drew University, in the other semifinal.
UNIVERSITY OF SCRANTON 78, DESALES UNIVERSITY 71 UNIVERSITY OF SCRANTON (23-2, 14-0 Conf.) Matt, Allison 10-23 5-8 25; Mellody, Taryn 7-15 2-3 18; Thran, Casey 6-10 3-4 16; Williams, Tiffaney 3-9 2-5 8; Daly, Kathleen 1-5 2-5 4; Remington, Stephanie 0-1 3-4 3; Waiters, Tammy 1-2 0-0 2; Brophy, Julie 0-2 0-0 0; Fabio, Michelle 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 28-68 19-33 78. DESALES UNIVERSITY (16-9, 8-6 Conf.) LeighAnn Burke 9-18 1-2 24; Kim Rarick 5-10 8-9 19; Erica Sovak 4-6 2-7 12; Caitlin Miller 3-6 1-2 7; Kirby Lutz 2-8 0-1 4; Kaila Wiand 1-4 0-0 3; Amanda Kuperavage 1-6 0-0 2; Lindsey Sykes 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 25-59 12-21 71. University of Scranton........ 24 54 - 78 DeSales University............ 46 25 - 71 3-point goals-Scranton 3-11 (Mellody, Taryn 2-7; Thran, Casey 1-2; Remington, Stephanie 0-1; Matt, Allison 0-1), DeSales 9-20 (LeighAnn Burke 5-10; Erica Sovak 2-3; Kim Rarick 1-2; Kaila Wiand 1-2; Amanda Kuperavage 0-1; Kirby Lutz 0-2). Rebounds-University of Scranton 43 (Williams, Tiffaney 12), DeSales 42 (Caitlin Miller 11). Assists-Scranton 13 (Matt, Allison 6), DeSales University 18 (Kaila Wiand 5).