Box Score
Williamsport, PA – Playing in the United States for the final time in 2012, Messiah College spoiled Lycoming's attempt at an upset with a 58-45 win on the road. The Falcons overcame a 32-30 deficit with under 15 minutes to play, as senior
Dori Gyori's 24 points and 18 rebounds led Messiah to the victory.
Ranked No. 8 in the
ESPN/USA Today Top 25 Coaches' Poll, the Falcons came out slow against the Warriors, shooting just 32% through the first 20 minutes. That first-half mark included a 1-12 performance from three-point range, as Messiah and Lycoming traded the lead four times before halftime.
"Lycoming did a really good job today," head coach
Mike Miller said. "They forced us to make jump shots, and we didn't make many of them in the first-half."
With the Warriors hanging tough, a jumper by senior
Kira Maier gave the Falcons a 24-22 advantage that would hold into the intermission.
Messiah built a small lead at the start of the second-half, as another jumper by Maier put the Falcons up 30-25. But Lycoming fought right back, with a three-pointer from Rachel Scheller finishing off a 7-0 streak that put the hosts in front 32-30.
With the Warriors thinking of an upset— and Messiah still struggling from the field—the Falcons finally got going. Over the next 9:25 the visitors outscored Lycoming 22-4, with Gyori herself collecting 10 points in the stretch.
Taylor Miller provided two buckets from downtown and two made three-throws in the game-changing run, accounting for all of her eight points.
Now with Messiah leading 52-36 with 5:16 left, Lycoming would be unable to draw closer than a 12-point deficit as the Falcons won on the road for the fifth time this season.
Gyori's 24 points is a season-high and just two points off her career-best 26 points earned last year against Alvernia. Her 18 rebounds are the most by a Falcons' player since Gyori grabbed a career-high 19 boards in a 60-52 win over DeSales almost exactly three years ago (Dec. 12, 2009).
"Dori wsa wonderful the whole game," Miller said. "She really anchored us, and it was big for us to start making some perimeter shots in that second-half stretch."
Messiah's stingy defense forced 19 turnovers from Lycoming, as they scored 24 total points off the Warriors' giveaways; Lycoming managed just 11 points off the Falcons' 15 turnovers.
Maier finished with five points and eight rebounds, with
Chelsea Danel collecting five points and five assists against zero turnovers.
Scheller's 12 points led the Warriors as no other player in the game broke double-digit scoring.
The Warriors fall to 2-6 this season and 2-3 in the Commonwealth Conference.
The win moves Messiah to 8-0 on the season, as they also improve to a perfect 5-0 in the Commonwealth.
"Any road win in this league is a good one," Miller said. "We're excited to get this win, and we're excited to now have the chance to head off to Puerto Rico."
On Saturday, the Falcons will fly to Puerto Rico to prepare for three games on their holiday trip. Messiah will match-up with Bridgewater State on Monday, Dec. 17. The No. 8 Falcons will also face No. 1 DePauw and the Metropolitan University of Puerto Rico.
