Grantham, PA – The Falcons home finale left much to be desired as the visiting Albright Lions beat Messiah 74-62, while also sweeping the season series.
 
Messiah's struggles started early as they saw their first two possessions end in turnovers.  They would pile up six turnovers in the first 5:30, allowing Albright to jump to an early 17-5 lead. Head coach Mike Miller dipped into his bench quickly, switching up the regular lineups, which allowed Hannah Brown and Maria Rumberger to get some early minutes. The change of pace lineups worked for coach Miller as the Falcons came roaring back to take a 19-18 lead with 7:59 to play in the first-half.
 
Kaitlyn Hoff's aggressive drives to the basket seemed to catch the Lions off balance during the Falcons 14-1 run, as she regularly got an open look or drew contact, resulting in numerous free throw attempts from the Commonwealth's leading free throw shooter (88.5 percent).
 
The Lions would respond, however going on a 17-6 run to end the half, giving them a 35-25 lead.
 
"We need a better start," said head coach Mike Miller, "We spent too much energy getting back into the game."
 
Messiah came out of the half-time break looking like a new team, as they effectively controlled each possession and in doing so cut Albright's lead to just two points, thanks to a 16-8 run. Jen Fairbanks started the run with a jumper inside the paint, with Kaitlyn Hoff providing the highlights with a clutch three-pointer followed by a tough and-one layup. The Falcons trio of Gillian Glackin (4), Kaitlyn Hoff (6), and Jen Fairbanks (6) were the sole scoring contributors during that 16 point run.
 
That is the closest the Falcons would come to taking back the lead as the Albright defense stifled the Falcons for the next 5:39 en route to a devastating 17-4 run, giving the Lions a comfortable 62-47 lead.
 
"We simply need to execute better when the big moments come," said coach Miller.
 
The Falcons were led by Gillian Glackin's 15 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks. Kaitlyn Hoff (14), Jen Fairbanks (13), and Hannah Nichols (11) also scored in the double-digits for the Falcons.
 
The loss drops Messiah to 12-11 overall and 8-6 in the conference.  They next play at Arcadia University on Feb. 17 at 6:00 p.m.