Nov. 14, 2010
Box Score | Photo Gallery 
EASTON, Pa. - The Dianne Nolan era started in dramatic fashion on Sunday, as the Lafayette women's basketball team hosted Bryant in its 2010-11 season opener. The Leopards posted their highest point total since 2005 - and needed every one of them - as they converted to tie the score twice in the final minute of regulation and overcame a two-possession deficit in overtime en route to topping the Bulldogs by a score of 84-80. Senior co-captain LaKeisha Wright led all players with 18 points.
The Leopards start a season at 1-0 for the first time since the 2007-08 campaign. Lafayette last scored 84 or more points on Dec. 2, 2005 - an 89-85 overtime loss at Howard. The Leopards' 72 points in regulation are the most since the 2008-09 season.
Bryant, which opened its season on Friday night at Penn, falls to 0-2 with the loss.
Wright's 18 points, which included 10 in the second half and overtime, came on 7-for-13 shooting from the field. As a team, the Leopards shot 41.8% (28-67) from the floor, 33.3% (5-15) from three-point range and 79.3% (23-29) from the free throw line.
Joining Wright in double figures where fellow senior co-captain Lauren Jackson, who netted 12 points, and sophomore Samantha Jordan, who contributed 11. Freshman Danielle Fiacco posted nine points, a team-high eight rebounds and all four of the Leopards' blocked shots in her collegiate debut. Sophomore Alicia Manning also had nine off the bench courtesy of three three-pointers. Senior co-captain Elizabeth Virgin tallied eight points on a 4-for-5 shooting day. In total, all 11 active Leopards contributed at least two points.
Behind Fiacco on the glass was junior Sarah McGorry, who hauled in six boards in addition to her three points in 25 minutes off the bench. The Leopards outrebounded the Bulldogs by a 49-40 count, with each team tearing down 19 rebounds from the offensive glass. Junior Melissa Downey dished out a game-high eight assists to go along with five points and three rebounds.
Bryant controlled the first five minutes of action, staking claim to a 10-4 edge thanks in large part to two early treys from Meredith Soper. The Leopards would score the next seven points, however, capping the run with a fast-break layup from Virgin to take an 11-10 lead. The Bulldogs fought back, staying hot from beyond the arc en route to a 22-15 advantage, but Lafayette once again answered with an extended run. This stretch went for 2:37 and saw the Leopards pour in 11 consecutive tallies - started by a three-pointer from sophomore Ashley Springer and fueled by four points from Jackson. Bryant would tie the score once again in the frame, but could not overtake the Leopards, who finished strong with a 7-2 spurt in the final two minutes of the half to enter the locker room holding a 40-34 advantage.
The Leopards shot an outstanding 61.5% (16-26) from the floor in the opening 20 minutes, but Bryant kept it close with four first-half three pointers. Wright paced Lafayette with eight first-half points, while four Bulldogs scored eight apiece prior to the intermission to account for 32 of the squad's 34 tallies.
Lafayette held its lead for most of the second half, but was unable to pull away from the Bulldogs. The margin stayed within seven points for the duration of the half, and a late Bryant run saw the visitors finally reclaim the lead at 68-66 with 2:03 remaining in regulation. In total, Bryant strung together an 11-3 run to take a two-possession lead at 70-66 with the clock ticking under two minutes to go. Freshman Madeline Fahan cut the lead in half with an offensive put back and, after an empty trip for the Bulldogs, Wright drained a jumper to knot the score at 70-70 with 38 seconds remaining. Brittany Stathura put Bryant back on top, 72-70, with 23 seconds left and the Leopards came up empty on their ensuing possession. The Bulldogs failed to ice the game, however, as Danielle Douglas missed the front end of a 1-and-1 to give the Maroon and White a final chance to extend the contest. Lafayette pushed the ball the length of the court, and Downey converted a layup to tie the score with just five seconds remaining. Bryant responded in kind, as Douglas went the length of the floor with time running out. The speedy guard got off a layup, but McGorry slid in and drew a charge to negate the play and send the contest into overtime deadlocked at 72-72.
Bryant struck first in the extra period, piecing together a 5-1 stretch to claim a 77-73 lead. Jackson then sank two free throws to Soper's one to make the score 78-75 in favor of the visitors. On the ensuing Lafayette possession, Manning drained a triple to knot the score for the sixth time at 78-78. The Leopards took their first lead of overtime on their next possession, as Fiacco followed her own miss and drew a foul. The freshman converted both free throws, as did Lauren Jackson on the next trip to put the Maroon and White ahead by an 84-80 count with just 20 seconds to go. Siamone Bennett put in a layup with nine seconds left to bring Bryant back within a possession, but Wright sank both of her attempts from the charity stripe to cement a Lafayette win, 84-80.
The Leopards converted just one field goal in the extra period but sank their last nine free throws to clinch the season-opening victory.
Soper posted a double-double for Bryant with 14 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Douglas and Lindsey Hudspeth each had 16 points to pace the Bulldogs' offense.
Lafayette will now hit the road for the first time, traveling to Brooklyn, N.Y. to meet Long Island on Wednesday, Nov. 17 at 5 p.m. The Blackbirds, who were picked to win the Northeast Conference in the coaches' preseason poll, are 1-0 after winning at Columbia, 73-60, on Nov. 12.
NOTES: Lafayette scored 40 points in the first half after failing to reach the 40-point plateau in seven games last season. Dianne Nolan is the first Lafayette head coach to win her Leopards' debut since Barbara Young in 1976. Junior Alexandra Serowoky will miss the entire 2010-11 season due to an ACL injury.
