Nov. 17, 2007
Box Score | Photo Gallery 
EASTON, Pa. - Despite double-digit scoring from two players, the Lafayette women's basketball team could not get past Mount St. Mary's and dropped a 55-51 decision at home. Senior forward Vanessa Van De Venter had a game-high 17 points to lead the Leopards in scoring while junior Jessica Spicer chipped-in a season-best 11 points.
The game was a back-and-forth battle that featured 16 lead changes but the Mount shot 42 percent from the field including a 5-of-12 showing from three-point range to escape with the four-point win. Junior forward Meaghan Malone led Lafayette with a career-best six boards while freshman LaKeisha Wright added five rebounds to go along with her game-best six assists.
Lafayette had a chance for the win in the final two minutes of the game but could not pull off the win. With 1:47 remaining in the game the Leopards held a 51-49 lead but a turnover and subsequent foul on Mount St. Mary's Dominique Mazzuchi prevented the Leopards from getting the victory.
Mary Dunn got Mount St. Mary's on the board first with a layup at 18:03. The Leopards evened the score at two when Wright fed Cristin Zavocki under the basket for the layup and Spicer's three at 16:26 gave the Leopards their first lead of the game. Lafayette trailed briefly before Spicer drained her second three as the shot clock expired to bring the score to 13-12 in favor of the Leopards.
The Mount went ahead at 17-15 before Spicer's third three-pointer put Lafayette back in the lead (18-17) with just over five minutes to play. The Leopards could not hang onto their lead, however, as Dunn's jumper at 1:52 gave her team a 23-20 lead and the Leopards found themselves trailing 23-21 as they headed into the locker room.
The second half saw more shots fall for both teams as Zavocki opened the period with a three-pointer and Van De Venter nailed another three to keep the Leopards within three of the lead (32-29). Spicer's jumper put the Leopards ahead for the first time in the half at 33-32 with just under 15 minutes to play.
Both teams held the lead several times for the remainder of the game. Wright missed her second of two free throws but Elizabeth Virgin pulled down the rebound and fed the ball back to Wright whose ensuing jumper put Lafayette up by three (47-44) with just under four minutes to play. With 1:47 on the clock, Virgin was fouled and made both free throw attempts as Lafayette held on to a slim 51-49 edge.
The teams found themselves tied again at 51-all but a layup by Tiffany Green with 24 seconds on the clock put the Mount up by two. Wright then turned the ball over on the next play and Lafayette was forced to foul Mazzuchi with1.7 seconds remaining. Mazzuchi made both free throws to seal the 55-51 win.
The Leopards hit the road for two-straight games, beginning with Columbia on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
Game Notes:
* Sophomore forward Brooke Niquette made her first-ever collegiate start.
* The loss evened the all-time series with the Mount at 1-1.
* The starting lineup of LaKeisha Wright, Brooke Niquette, Vanessa Van De Venter, Cristin Zavocki and Jessica Spicer was the third different lineup in three games for the Leopards.
