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Grantham, PA - Messiah College overcame a 41-24 second-half deficit to stun Elizabethtown College 59-58 on Wednesday night in Brubaker Auditorium. A 12-3 run started the comeback at the 15:18 mark, with Messiah tying the game at 53-53 - more than 10 minutes later - on two free-throws from
Gillian Glackin.
With the game tied at 55-55 with 90 seconds to play, Glackin put the Falcons ahead with a shot clock-beating bucket in the paint. Two more free-throws from
Taylor Miller put Messiah up four points with less than a minute to go, with Elizabethtown's eventual last-second attempt from half court being blocked by Katelynn Vanderhoff.
Taylor Miller finished with a career-high 25 points, with Glackin adding 15 points and 10 rebounds.
"This was Taylor's best game of her career," head coach
Mike Miller said. "She handled the ball really well and was disciplined on offense. She kept us within striking distance in the first half and really turned it on in the second half."
Aside from Miller, the Falcons struggled to produce offensively in the first half. Shooting only 19.4% (6-31) from the field, the Falcons fell behind quickly. At the 8:08 mark, Elizabethtown pulled ahead by 11 after holding the Falcons scoreless for more than six minutes, yet it was Rachel Forjan who gave the Blue Jays their greatest lead of the half (13 points) with 4:14 to play. In the final minutes, Miller went on to score six of the Falcons' final seven points of them half to keep them in the game at 20-30.
"We were not good the first half," Miller said. "We had no energy and we turned inward. That's not who we are. The players really revealed their true character in the second half and fought for the win."
The second half proved to be a completely different ball game for the Falcons. Offensively, they improved to 41.4% (12-29) from the field and were 14-of-16 (87.5%) from the free throw line. The Falcons also crashed the offensive boards, extending plays and picking up nine additional points.Â
With 9:09 to play and an 11 point deficit, the momentum began to shift. Miller missed her initial shot on an in-bounds play but
Sienna Wisse was there to grab the offensive board. Wisse kicked the ball back out to Miller, who drained the three to draw within eight (45-53). Moments later,
Chelsea Danel's three point attempt was off the mark, but Glackin was there to get the offensive rebound, the put back, and the foul. After completing the three-point play, the Falcons were only six points behind with eight minutes to play.
The Falcons stepped up defensively around the 9:00 mark and held the Blue Jays scoreless through more than five minutes of play. Messiah took advantage of Elizabethtown's woes and scored 13 unanswered points. At the 4:20 mark, Miller hit a long two-point bucket to give the Falcons only their second lead of the game at 55-53. Their first lead came on Miller's opening three less than two minutes into play.
The Blue Jays' Emily Young tied things up (55-55) moments later, yet Glackin was quick to respond with a baseline shot that put the Falcons back on top. In the very next play, Glackin and Young squared off again, but this time Glackin's foul sent Young to the free throw line. Young missed both shots and
Katelyn Vanderhoff was able to grab the defensive rebound.Â
With only 1:20 left in the game, the Falcons took their time bringing the ball up the court. After using most of the shot clock, Miller fired a shot and missed, but Vanderhoff was there once again for the rebound. With a new 30 second shot clock, the Falcons had no reason to hurray. In order to get the ball back, the Blue Jays needed to foul. Miller ended up being on the receiving end and went to the free throw line. After making both shots, the Falcons had a two possession lead (59-55).
The Blue Jays weren't willing to back down without a fight, though. In their next possession, Elizabethtown's Rachel Forjan hit her third triple of the game to bring them within one point with just 35 seconds left. Despite initially struggling to in-bound the ball, the Falcons were able to overcome the Blue Jays' aggressive defense and use the full shot clock yet again. With two ticks left on the shot clock, Vanderhoff threw up a deep three that was off the mark, but the Falcons were unable to come up with the rebound. Forjan grabbed the defensive board and quickly dribbled toward her basket. As the final seconds came off the clock, Forjan attempted a half-court shot, but Vanderhoff was there to bat down the shot and seal the Falcons' 59-58 come-from-behind victory.
The win for Messiah moved them to 8-3 in the Commonwealth, tied for second-place with the Blue Jays. The Falcons will look to continue their win streak on Saturday when they host the Lions of Albright College. Game time is set for 3 p.m.
