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EASTON, Pa. -- For the second time in seven days, Lafayette gave everything it had against Patriot League powerhouse Bucknell. Once again, however, it was not quite enough, as the Bison extended their winning streak to nine games with a hard-fought 68-59 win at Kirby Sports Center on Wednesday evening.

With the loss, coupled with Colgate's 82-72 win over Lehigh, the Leopards slip to the No. 9 seed for the upcoming Patriot League Tournament which begins this weekend. They will travel back to No. 8 Colgate for a second-consecutive weekend for a first round contest on Saturday.

Jamie O'Hare had one of the strongest all-around outings of her career on Senior Night, totaling 12 points, nine steals and eight assists. The nine thefts were the most for any Leopard player this millennium, while the eight helpers were two shy of her career-high set earlier this season. Maia Hood added a team-high 15 points, hitting all eight of her free throw attempts.

The Bison (23-6, 17-1 PL) had a different player step up in each half. Jacquie Klotz had all 16 of her points, and nine of her 11 rebounds, in the opening 20 minutes. Lafayette shut her down after the intermission, but fellow standout Claire DeBoer tallied 20 of her game-high 21 points in the second half to make up for those lost points.

The Leopards dug themselves an early 22-7 hole after the first quarter, hitting only three of their first 13 shots from the field, including a 1-for-8 performance from 3-point range which set the tone for the game. Lafayette ended the night 4-for-24 from long distance, compared to 18-for-38 (47.4 percent) from inside the arc.

Bucknell maintained a 30-13 edge midway through the second quarter before the Maroon and White slowly began to chip away at the deficit. They ended the half on a 12-3 run, with seven of those points coming in the last 60 seconds, to reduce the margin to 33-25 at halftime.

The Leopards stayed hot with baskets from back-to-back layups from O'Hare to begin the next frame. The Bison responded by upping the lead back to 44-31, but Lafayette was again within four by the end of the quarter after Hood sank a pair of free throws with 33 seconds remaining to make it 47-43.

Four points would turn out to be as close as the home side would get. It was still only 57-52 after a jumper from Alex Cantwell with 3:45 left in the contest, but Bucknell scored the next six points to put the game out of reach.

Anna Ptasinski (11 points) and Ashley Lutz (10 points) joined Hood and O'Hare in double figures, with Lutz going 5-for-7 from the floor while also contributing seven rebounds and three steals. Annette Snow additionally totaled three points and five rebounds, including a team-high three offensive boards in her final home game on College Hill. Snow earned the start on Senior Night and earned 22 minutes of playing time.

O'Hare's nine steals surpassed her career-high of seven set on Nov. 22 at Hartford. The previous high for any Leopard player this century was an eight-steal effort by Kim Costello '03 on Jan. 4, 2003.

The Leopards will now look to solve Colgate (6-22, 4-14) for the first time this year, as two of the Raiders' conference wins have come at the expense of the Maroon and White. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m.