READING, Pa. - The No. 21 Messiah women's basketball team wrapped up the 2019-20 regular season on a high note with a 74-68 victory over the No. 19 Albright Lions on Saturday afternoon. Leah Springer finished the game with a career-high 31 points with 11 rebounds, three steals, three assists, and a pair of blocks to lead the Falcons on the afternoon.
 
Jayneisha Davis (18 points) and Eleana Eckley (15 points) also went for double-digits in the road victory.
 
Messiah completed the regular season with a 21-4 overall record and a 15-1 mark in the conference. The Falcons, who had locked up the top seed in the upcoming MAC Commonwealth Tournament earlier in the week, will be back on the court in the Conference Semifinals on Wednesday, Feb. 26 at 7:00 p.m. Messiah will take on the winner of the Play-In Game that takes place on Monday.
 
Balanced Opening Half
Leah Springer started the game off with seven-straight points for the Falcons to give her team a 7-4 lead midway through the opening quarter. Messiah continued to build upon their lead and jumped out on a 7-to-2 run past the Lions. Grace Cryan started this run with a fast-break layup followed by a layup and three pointer from Jayneisha Davis, which gave Messiah a six-point lead (14-8). Albright hit a jumper with less than 30 seconds remaining to bring the score down to 14-10 going into the second quarter.

Messiah continued to pull ahead in the second quarter and led by as many as nine points (22-13) after a three-pointer from Eleana Eckley and a jumper from Springer. However, the Lions began to chip away at Messiah's lead and eventually brought it down to two points (28-26) after an and-one play from Albright star Dejah Terrell. The two squads continued to battle throughout the remainder of the quarter and the Falcons headed into halftime break with a five-point (34-29) lead.

Falcons Come Out Strong
The Falcons came out of the halftime break hot. After an early Albright bucket, Messiah went on a six-point spurt to bring their lead back up to nine points (40-31). The two teams traded baskets back-and-forth, but a three-pointer from Eleana Eckley gave the Falcons a 10 point lead (45-35) with just under five minutes remaining in the third quarter.

The Lions began to slowly chip away at Messiah's lead, bringing it down to six (47-41), however the Falcons were able to outscore the Lions 17-13 in the third quarter to secure a 51-42 advantage going into the final quarter.

Messiah Downs Albright
Although Albright outscored Messiah 26-23 in the final quarter, the Falcons were still able to hold on to a 74-68 victory when the buzzer sounded.

The Lions started the fourth quarter with a 6-to-0 run, bringing the Falcons' lead down to 51-48. The two teams exchanged points back-and-forth for a couple minutes, but then Messiah pieced together an 11-to-3 run to extend their lead to 68-57. Albright went on a 9-to-3 run in the last two and a half minutes of play, but it wouldn't be enough. Messiah finished the game with a 74-68 victory to pick up their 21st win of the season and to finish conference play with an impressive 15-1 record. 

Up Next
As previously mentioned, Messiah will be back in action on Wednesday, Feb. 26 at 7:00 p.m. when they host the MAC Commonwealth Semifinals. The Falcons will play the winner of No. 4 Stevenson and No. 5 Lycoming as they battle each other in the Play-In game on Monday. Continue to check GoMessiah.com for future schedule updates.