NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. (Jan. 20) – Trailing by two points with five minutes left in regulation, the Saint Vincent women's basketball team closed the game on a 17-5 run to pull away from host Westminster College in a Presidents' Athletic Conference showdown in the Buzz Ridl Gymnasium.
 
The Bearcats (9-9, 7-6 PAC) raced out to a 14-point halftime advantage in the matchup between two longtime rivals, only to see the Titans answer with a big third quarter, before eventually taking their first lead midway through the fourth quarter. Saint Vincent would then regain the momentum down the stretch, using strong foul shooting to pull away for the double-digit win and earn a season split in the series.
 
Lizzie Bender and Emily Thompson each scored 14 points to share the Bearcat team lead, with Bender going 6-8 from the field and posting team-highs of seven rebounds and three assists. Camdon Bashor was a third SVC player in double figures, scoring 12 points, while dishing a team-best six assists and going a perfect 4-4 from the foul line. Emily Cavacini added nine points, and handed out five helpers. 
 
The Saint Vincent defense turned in another solid performance, limiting the Titans to just 28 percent from the field (17-60) and 20 percent (5-24) from behind the arc, while finishing with a plus-4 in the turnover margin, forcing 16 Westminster miscues and committing just 12.
 
The Bearcats jumped out to an early 6-3 lead in the first quarter on baskets from Bender, Alana Winkler and Thompson, before the Titans made four free throws to tie the game with 5:01 left in the quarter. Bashor cashed in on a conventional three-point play to make it 9-6 with 4:17 left, but the rest of the quarter was devoid of offense, with the Titans scoring the game's only field goal over the final four minutes to make it a one-point game, 9-8, at the close of the quarter.
 
Behind four points from Bender and two from Danielle Pontius, the Bearcat lead grew to 15-10 with 7:27 left in the quarter. The Titans answered to make it 15-12, before the Bearcats seized the game's momentum heading into intermission, embarking on a 15-4 run over the final six minutes of the quarter to take a 30-16 halftime lead. During the surge, Makenna Maier scored five points, and Bender and Thompson four apiece, while the SVC defense held Westminster to just two field goals and forced four turnovers.
 
Westminster regrouped coming out of the break, scoring the first seven points of the third quarter to close the gap to 30-23 with just over six minutes left in the frame. Thompson connected on jumpers on back-to-back trips, with the second coming from behind the arc, to push the margin back into double digits, 35-25, with four minutes to go, but the Titans closed the quarter on an 8-0 run to make it a two-point game, 35-33, at the end of the frame. Over the third quarter, the Titans outscored the Bearcats 17-5, with SVC going just 2-14 from the field.
 
The Titans stayed hot to open the fourth quarter, connecting on three-pointers on consecutive possessions to take their first lead of the day, 39-37, with 7:47 left in regulation. Thirty seconds later, the hosts would cap off the extended 18-4 run with a layup to push their lead to 41-37 with 6:48 remaining.
 
Bashor answered with five straight points, giving the Bearcats back the lead, 42-41, with another and-one with 5:18 left. The teams then traded baskets – and the lead – over the next two minutes, before Bashor spearheaded another SVC surge, scoring four points in a 40-second span to put the Bearcats in front 51-47 with 2:19 left. The Titans scored to cut it to two, 51-49, with 1:17 to go, but Bender promptly answered with a mid-range jumper to push the lead back to four points. SVC held the Titans scoreless the rest of the way, and connected on five free throws over the final 55 seconds to pull away.
 
Natalie Murrio scored 15 points and Camden Hergenrother 10 to lead the Titans, while teammate Katie Fitzpatrick grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds.
 
Now winners of three straight, the Bearcats will have a weeklong respite before returning to action next Saturday, Jan. 27, hosting Waynesburg University at 4 p.m. in the Robert S. Carey Student Center.