GRANTHAM, Pa. - The Westminster College women's basketball team hung tough on the road at nationally-ranked Messiah College in the first round of the NCAA Division III Tournament Friday night before succumbing to a 77-65 season-ending loss.
The Titans (22-7) trailed 39-28 at the half against the No. 7 Falcons (26-2) and drew within six points a two occasions in the second half but could not make a run down the stretch.
Senior guard Desiree Sterling (Newton Falls, Ohio/Newton Falls), the school's all-time leading scorer playing in her final game, scored a team-high 17 points after being held scoreless for the first 16:30 of the game. Junior guard/forward Emilee Ackerman (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield) also led the Titans with 17 points as the only two double-figure scorers for Westminster.
Senior forward Talley Felger (Petersburg, Ohio/Springfield Local) also played a tremendous game for Westminster with a game-high 13 rebounds to go with six points. The Titans held a 48-25 rebound advantage on Messiah despite the Falcons have four players standing 6-feet or higher.
The Titans were victimized, however, by 25 turnovers while they could only induce 12 by the Falcons. Messiah also shot better 50 percent to the Titans' 41 percent.
Nicki Lobach led all scorers with 25 points for Messiah while Ashley Brooks bucketed 12 points.
Westminster finishes the season with its best record in school history at 22-7 and its second trip all-time to the national tournament. The Titans lost 69-43 in the second round of the 2005 NCAA Tournament to the same Messiah team.
Founded in 1852 and related to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Westminster College is ranked among national leaders in graduation rate performance, according to U.S. News Guide to America's Best Colleges, and is one of the most affordable national liberal arts colleges in Pennsylvania. Westminster is also honored as one of "The Best 361 Colleges" and "Best in the Northeast" by The Princeton Review, and was recognized by the Templeton Guide as a "Character Building College."
Nearly 1,600 students benefit from individualized attention from dedicated faculty, while choosing from 41 majors and nearly 100 organizations on the New Wilmington, Pa. campus.
