Jan. 30, 2008

Box Score
Box Score (PDF) 

BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Hope Foster scored a season-high 20 points for Bucknell, but Lehigh used a 12-2 run midway through the second half to take the lead for good as the Bison women's basketball team lost 59-53 to the Mountain Hawks Wednesday night at Stabler Arena. Bucknell fell to 8-12 on the season and 3-3 in Patriot League play with the loss, while Lehigh won for the seventh time in eight games to improve to 13-8 overall and 5-1 in the Patriot League.

The game was close throughout as neither team led by more than seven points. There were a total of 11 ties and eight lead changes in the contest.

Bucknell went up 42-38 with just over 13 minutes to play, but Lehigh held the Bison to just one field goal over the next nine minutes as it went up 54-47. Bucknell managed to cut the deficit to 56-53 on a runner by Kesha Champion with just over two minutes to play, but the Mountain Hawks made 3 of 4 free throws in the final minutes to round out the scoring.

Lauren Schober and Champion joined Foster in double figures with 10 points apiece, but the Bison were outrebounded 38-31, including 17-7 on the offensive boards.

Foster, who made all five of her field goals in the first 20 minutes of play, and 8 of 9 overall, helped Bucknell play tight with Lehigh in the first 10 minutes of the close first half that featured six lead changes and seven ties. She tallied 10 of the first 15 points for the Bison, nearly matching her scoring average on the season. However, Foster's last basket of the first half only evened the score at 15-15.

Four points from Joyce Novacek on a pair of layups and four more from Schober on a foul-line jumper and a pair of free throws helped Bucknell open a 27-21 advantage, its largest of the half. Lehigh then went on a 12-4 run, keyed by eight points from Alex Ross, to end the half as the Bison managed just two field goals in the final five minutes of the stanza.

Bucknell netted 31 points in the first half, equaling the second-most by a Lehigh opponent this season.

Ross led the Mountain Hawks with 18 points, including three 3-pointers. A total of four Lehigh players were in double figures with Erica Prosser and Kaela Pearce netting 11 apiece and Claire Sullivan totaling 10 off the bench.

In addition to her 20 points, Foster grabbed a team-high seven rebounds for Bucknell to go over 800 in her career. She also had three blocks, taking over sole possession of the Patriot League blocks record with 312 in her career.

Bucknell shot a solid 47.8 percent (22 of 46) in the game, including 58.3 percent in the first half. Lehigh managed to shoot 33.9 percent (20 of 59).

The Bison assisted on 17 of their 22 field goals with Schober leading the way with six. Kristina Collymore added five, while Champion dished out four.

Bucknell will wrap up its two-game road trip Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. against Army.