PITTSBURGH, Pa. - The Westminster College women's basketball team saw a nine-point halftime lead go by the wayside in a 45-44 nonconference loss at La Roche Tuesday night. The Titans fall to 2-2 on the season and the Redhawks remain unbeaten at 4-0.
Westminster's last three games were decided by a combined four points, but this was the first that the Titans were on the losing end of a nail-biter.
Junior forward Emily Dolsak (McDonald, Ohio/McDonald) led Westminster by posting her fourth career double-double with 11 points and a career high-tying 11 rebounds.
Sophomore forward Andi Ridge (North Tonawanda, N.Y./Starpoint) bucketed nine points to go with eight rebounds.
Senior point guard Kaitlin McCarthy (Lowellville, Ohio/Lowellville) handed out a game-high five assists to go with six points.
Jessica Pitts and Chantelle Jennings led the Redhawks with 16 and 14 points, respectively.
Westminster outrebounded La Roche, 32-22, and outshot the Redhawks, 38.1 percent (16-42) to 33.3 percent (17-51), but the Titans committed 19 turnovers to La Roche's 14 including a turnover with 36 seconds left while trailing by one point.
Westminster led by as many as 10 points in the first half before holding a 24-17 lead at halftime. The Titans then scored first in the second half to take a nine-point, 26-17 lead.
La Roche then went on a 14-4 run to take the lead with 12 minutes left. The Titans went back up by five points with eight minutes left, but La Roche came right back to lead by four points with four minutes left.
The Titans narrowed La Roche's lead to one point with a pair of free throws with 1:09 remaining, but neither scored in the final minute.
Westminster hosts Hiram Saturday at 2 p.m. for its first home game of the season.
About Westminster College...
Founded in 1852 and related to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Westminster College is a top tier liberal arts college, a national leader in graduation rate performance, and a "Great School, Great Price," according to U.S. News Best Colleges guide. Westminster ranked 38th among liberal arts colleges, according to the Washington Monthly College Guide, and is one of the most affordable national liberal arts colleges in Pennsylvania. Westminster is also honored as one of "The Best 373 Colleges" and "Best in the Northeast" by The Princeton Review, and is named to the President's Honor Roll for excellence in service learning.
Nearly 1,600 undergraduate and graduate students benefit from individualized attention from dedicated faculty while choosing from 41 majors and nearly 100 organizations on the New Wilmington, Pa., campus. Visit www.westminster.edu/advantage to view "Advantage: Westminster" A Strategic Plan 2010-2020.
