EASTON, Pa. – Senior Alex Cantwell came off the bench to connect on a career-high three 3-pointers to lead the Lafayette women's basketball team over Navy, 55-42, on Wednesday afternoon at Kirby Sports Center.
 
The Leopards (7-11, 2-5 PL) opened the game with an 18-point first quarter as sophomore Natalie Kucowski scored six of Lafayette's first eight points. Cantwell caught fire early, connecting a pair of 3-pointers in the frame and finished the contest with a season-high 15 points, five rebounds and three assists.
 
With a 10-pont advantage after the first quarter, freshman Makaila Wilson got in on the fun, scoring six of her eight total points in the period. She scored the final points of the first half, a strong post move with seven seconds left to give Lafayette a 31-19 lead at the break.
 
Navy (8-9, 3-4 PL) came out of the locker room strong, opening the third quarter on an 8-2 run to get within six points with 1:25 left in the quarter. Cantwell had the answer, connecting on a 3-pointer with 40 seconds left in the quarter to give Lafayette a 38-29 lead heading into the final 10 minutes.
 
Sophomore Olivia Martino came alive in the final frame, scoring nine of her 11 points in the quarter and connecting on a corner 3-pointer off the Kucowski assist to push the lead back to 10 with under four minutes to play.
 
The 3-ball was the 55^th of Martino's career, tying her with April Shippee '96 on the all-time Lafayette 3-point field goals list.
 
Lafayette played efficient basketball down the stretch, scoring on five of its final seven possessions and turning the ball over only once in the final five minutes.
 
On the ensuing Maroon and White possession, Martino crashed the boards and cleaned up a sophomore Drew Freeland miss before forcing an empty Midshipmen possession. Freshman Nicole Johnson then drove the lane and finished a tough layup with the shot clock expiring to push the Lafayette lead to 13 with two minutes to play.
 
Navy answered with a 3-pointer before Freeland knocked down a foul line jumper with 48 second remaining. The Mids had no answer as Kucowski added to her Patriot League leading rejections total on the season, sending away a Navy layup before Martino knocked down a pair of free throws to seal it with 15 seconds left.
 
Martino finished with 11 points and eight boards while Kucowski scored eight points, pulling down 12 rebounds and dishing out three assists.
 
Navy's Kolbi Green had a game-high 17 points, making three 3-pointers and tallying three steals.
 
The Leopards controlled the boards, collecting 48 rebounds to Navy's 28 and held a 26-12 advantage in points in the paint in route to snapping a four-game losing streak.
 
The Maroon and White hit the road, traveling to American on Saturday with tip-off scheduled for noon before returning to Kirby Sports Center on Jan. 30, hosting Boston U.
 
For the latest on the Lafayette College women's basketball program, follow the Leopards on Twitter @LafayetteWBB, Facebook at Lafayette Women's Basketball, and Instagram @LafayetteWBB.