PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Senior guard Halee Smith scored a season-high 17 points in the Leopards' nail-biting 72-65 loss to Rutgers on Saturday at Jersey Mike's Arena. 

Senior Abby Antognoli had a strong outing for the Leopards, finishing with 15 points, five rebounds, four assists and a steal. The Economics major went 5-of-11 from the field, four of which were scored from beyond the arc. 

Junior guard Kay Donahue gave Lafayette a 2-0 lead at the 9:27 mark with a pull-up jumper, but Kiyomi McMiller quickly responded with a triple for the hosts. The Maroon and White then posted a 11-0 run, courtesy of points from Smith (7), junior Sauda Ntaconayigize (2) and sophomore Tasha Chudy (2). The Scarlet Knights began to find their rhythm with three minutes left in the quarter, but a triple by Ntaconayigize and some Chudy free throws handed Lafayette a 19-12 lead after the first.

Lafayette was first to put points on the board in the second quarter, via a three-pointer by sophomore guard Teresa Kiewiet with 9:01 to go in the half. Donahue (2) and Antognoli (3) tacked on five more points to give Lafayette a 15-point lead (27-12), its largest of the game. McMiller then knocked down back-to-back mid-range jumpers later in the session, but Smith drained a jumper of her own (2:23) to maintain a double-digit lead (12). At the intermission, the Maroon and White led 33-27.

Rutgers outscored Lafayette 26-20 in the third period, led by McMiller's nine points. McMiller took 25 shoots on the afternoon, while Lafayette held her to 12 makes. Momentum began to shift after a Scarlet Knights' 10-0 run, with Rutgers taking its first lead (37-36) since the first quarter at the 6:26 mark. The next few buckets were traded back-and-forth, but two free throws by McMiller gave Rutgers a 42-39 lead. Lafayette came right back down the floor and buried a triple thanks to Smith. On its next possession after making a big stop, Kiewiet connected on a three ball to restore the lead (45-44). Antognoli quickly made it a four-point game (48-44) with a triple of her own with 2:31 to go. Rutgers found some life late in the period, leaving spectators with a 53-53 contest with 10 minutes to go.

The hosts owned the final period, putting up seven more points (19-12) than the Leopards. Rutgers took back the lead on its first possession, but Kiewiet responded for the Leopards with a deep three from the top of the key. Chyna Cornwell restored Rutgers' lead (60-58) right before Lafayette nailed back-to-back three-pointers to take a 64-60 lead with 5:34 to go in Jersey Mike's Arena. An 8-0 Scarlet Knights' spurt put Rutgers back in the driver's seat (68-65) with 2:46 remaining. Two huge buckets down the stretch by Awa Sidibe secured the hosts their eighth win of the season.

Head coach Kia Damon-Olson and her squad return to action in 2025 at 2 p.m. on Jan. 2 as the Leopards travel up north to face Boston U to start Patriot League play.
 

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