NORTON, Mass. – An impressive shooting performance pushed Wheaton College past the Roger Williams University Women's Basketball team Saturday afternoon, as the Hawks fell to the Lyons 74-63.

 

The Lyons shot 54.9% from the field in the game, while the Hawks went for 40.7% in the game. Wheaton went 15-for-26 in the first half, nearly hitting at 60 percent clip in the period.

 

After the Lyons notched the first score of the game, the Hawks ran off five straight points and held the lead over the next six minutes. The Lyons fought back, tying the game at 21 with 7:33 to play in the period. The two teams then traded baskets over the next three minutes, culminating in a stalemate at 27 at the 4:06 mark. At that point, the Hawk offense stalled, as Wheaton closed the half on a 12-0 to go up 39-27 entering the second period.

 

The deficit, combined with the Lyons' proficient perimeter shooting, put RWU in a difficult position to come back. After trailing by double-digits throughout the beginning of the second half, the Hawks slowly clawed their way back into the game, eventually pulling within five with just over three minutes to play.

 

The 65-60 turned to a 68-63 score with 1:14 left, the Hawks still holding on to chance to pull out a last-minute win. Yet their shooting went cold in the closing minute, held scoreless over 74 seconds, ending the comeback run.

 

Caitlin McNabb (Springfield, Mass.) led RWU in scoring, finishing with 15 points and nine rebounds off the bench. Jackie Criss (Westwood, Conn.) and Caitlyn Leone (Irvington, N.Y.) each scored in double figures with 12 and 10, respectively.

Wheaton's Krystin Hickey (Manchester, N.H.) had a game-high 22 points with five assists. Andrea Bailey (Needham, Mass.) scored nine with eight assists.

Roger Williams (3-4) will head into the holiday break with a three-week layoff, returning in the New Year with a 1:00 p.m. home matchup on January 5 against Connecticut College.