PAINESVILLE, Ohio. – Sophomore Sarah Saba (Lancaster, N.Y./Lancaster) totaled 17 points, eight rebounds, four blocks and three steals to lead the Daemen College women's basketball team to a 69-65 victory over Lake Erie College here today in non-league action. Daemen improved to 2-1 on the year, while LEC dropped to 2-2.
Senior Raeann Stilwell (Cheektowaga, N.Y./St. Mary's of Lancaster) helped the Daemen cause with 14 points, five assists and three steals, while classmate Somara Colon (Bronx, N.Y./Mott Haven Village Prep) added 10 points and eight rebounds in 20 minutes off the bench. Sophomore Taylor Heinold (Hamburg, N.Y./Immaculata) chipped in nine points and three assists for the Wildcats, while juniors Leah McDonell (North Tonawanda, N.Y./Cardinal O'Hara) and Rachel Pawlak (North Tonawanda, N.Y./Niagara-Wheatfield) both scored seven points. Sophomore Liz Miles (Cicero, N.Y./Cicero-North Syracuse) grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds for the visitors.
Sophomore Kayla Gabor (Mentor, Ohio) paced Lake Erie with 22 points, eight rebounds and four steals, while senior Shelby Carpenter (New Lebanon, Ohio) also scored 22 points and recorded five steals.
The host Storm jumped out to a 13-3 lead four minutes into the first quarter, and LEC held a 15-6 lead when a layup by McDonell sparked the Wildcats on an 8-0 run. A layup by Colon with 1:32 left in the quarter capped the spurt and cut the LEC lead to a point, 15-14. Daemen took a 19-17 lead into the second quarter after Pawlak drained a three-pointer with five seconds left in the first quarter.
The teams traded baskets for the first five minutes of the second quarter and the game was knotted at 24-24 when the Wildcats put together a 13-4 run. Heinold hit two three-pointers during the run and a layup by McDonell with 1:18 left before halftime capped the run and gave Daemen a 37-28 lead. The Wildcats went scoreless the rest of the half and Daemen took a 37-32 lead into halftime.
Daemen opened the third quarter with a layup by Saba, but LEC answered with a three-pointer by Gabor and the hosts later took a 44-42 lead following a triple by Carpenter with 6:49 left in the quarter. Back-to-back three-pointers by Heinold and Stilwell late in the third quarter gave the Wildcats a 53-49 lead, and a a buzzer-beating putback by Pawlak gave the visitors a 56-53 lead after three quarters.
Another layup by Pawlak at the start of the final quarter gave Daemen a 58-53 lead, but the Storm answered with back-to-back layups by senior Sami Narducci (North Royalton, Ohio) and the hosts regained the lead, 59-58, after Carpenter canned two free throws with 6:20 left in the fourth. The hosts took a 63-62 lead following a three-pointer by junior Dalia Jones (Cleveland, Ohio) with 2:33 left, but Saba gave the Wildcats the lead for good 10 seconds later. Two free throws by McDonell with 1:40 left gave Daemen a 66-63 lead, but Gabor cut the lead to a point following a jumper with 1:28 remaining. Both teams came up empty on their next possession and Stilwell drained two from the charity stripe with 14 seconds left to give the visitors a 68-65 lead. LEC was off the mark on the jumper with 10 seconds left, and Saba made one of two free throws with five seconds left to secure the win.
Daemen shot 40-percent (25-for-63) from the field and connected on 8-of-25 from three-point land. The Storm canned 21-of-66 shots (32%) overall and made just 4-of-17 from downtown. LEC outscored the Wildcats 19-11 from the free throw line and hosts forced 22 Daemen turnovers which resulted in a 22-13 edge in points off turnovers for LEC. The Wildcats finished with a 45-42 edge in total rebounds.
Daemen is idle until next weekend when it hosts to Le Moyne College in a non-league game on Saturday, Nov. 28.
Follow Daemen College athletics on Twitter (@DaemenAthletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/daemencollegeathletics) to get live game updates and breaking news throughout the year.
