New York, NY — A lengthy road trip and a quality opponent equated to a disheartening result for the Messiah College women's basketball team Wednesday night, as the Falcons dropped their first loss of the year in a 70-69 overtime decision at Baruch College.
The defeat snapped an eight-game winning streak for Messiah (8-1, 0-0), while the loss ironically came just a day after the Falcons dropped to number four in the latest USA Today/ESPN Top 25 Coaches Poll — a one-spot slip that came with little explanation.
Wednesday night in Manhattan, however, Messiah fell behind early to Baruch only to put on a serious comeback late, coming up just short in the waning moments to fall for the first time in 2007-2008.
“Tonight wasn't about a lack of effort, or a lack of wanting it,” said Mike Miller, Messiah head coach. “We simply didn't play smart enough basketball to win. We talked after the game in that our hope is by January and February we'll make up a few possessions. We certainly gave some away tonight.”
The majority of those instances occurred early on in Wednesday's contest, as the Falcons connected on just nine of 33 first-half field goal attempts (27.3 percent) while falling behind by a 20-8 score in the game's first eight minutes. Baruch (7-3, 2-0) led by 25-13 with 6:50 to play in the first period, but Messiah responded with a 13 to four run to close the half in making the halftime count a manageable 29-26 deficit.
“We used a lot of energy trying to get back in the game and I think that ultimately hurt us,” Miller said.
Messiah was able to claim leads of four points on multiple occasions in the second half, thanks largely in part to far better offensive production (the Falcons connected on 16 of 24 second-half shots, 66.7 percent). Still, Baruch would not go away, eventually forcing Messiah into a season-high 27 turnovers
Miller's team led 58-52 — Messiah's largest lead of the night — with 2:56 to play in regulation after a jumper from junior Silalei Shani, but fouls on the Falcons' next two defensive possessions eventually helped the Bearcats tie the score at 60-60 with 52 seconds to play.
Following a pair of timeouts, senior Nikki Lobach gave away a rare turnover, fouling Baruch's Chiresse Paradise immediately. After Paradise connected on both free throws, Lobach achieved redemption with just three seconds on the game clock, being fouled on her way to the basket and making both charity tosses to force overtime.
“Historically, Nikki has not been the greatest free throw shooter,” Miller said. “This year, however, she has really stepped up and added that facet to her game (41 of 47 on the season, 87.2 percent). She kept us alive a couple times tonight at the line.”
Lobach's rallying efforts would again be needed in the extra stanza, as Baruch scored the first six points of overtime to claim a 68-62 lead two and a half minutes in. A layup from Lobach and a three pointer from freshman Angie Rapchinski drew the score to 68-67 with 15 seconds remaining, but junior Ashley Brooks was whistled for a foul on the Falcons' next defensive possession. Bearcat forward Dominique McClendon — who would finish with a career-high 32 points — made both free throws with 11 seconds on the clock to make the score 70-67, Baruch, but Messiah was not done yet.
With Baruch fouling to avoid a three-point attempt, Lobach again went to the line, making both to pull the Falcons to a 70-69 count with eight seconds remaining. After a pair of missed Bearcat free throws with six seconds to play, Rapchinski hauled down the defensive rebound and fired an outlet pass to senior Amy Reed, who began dribbling down the floor for what would be a last-second, desperation hoist from near mid-court.
Instead, she was tripped just before half court.
A foul was called.
With just one second remaining, Reed went to the line for a one-and-one opportunity.
Her first shot rimmed out, and Baruch's Myleka Garnett pulled down the board.
Messiah had lost for just the 11th time in the last four years.
“We learned some valuable lessons about ourselves tonight, and this was a tough place for us to play,” Miller said. “It would have been nice to learn these lessons in a win, but hopefully this will help us down the road.”
Lobach finished with a team-high 20 points for Messiah, going six of 12 from the field. Senior Lauren Schurr added 14 points on a five for nine shooting effort, while Shani added 10 points on a five for eight clip.
Brooks finished with a team-high 10 rebounds.
The Falcons will have another difficult road test next, as the team will travel to St. Mary's College of Maryland — a team sporting an impressive 6-1 overall record — on Saturday. Game time is set for 2 p.m.
