LANCASTER, Pa. – On the final day of Terry Greene Tip-Off Classic action at the Mayser Center, the Haverford College women's basketball team (3-0) picked up a 59-53 neutral site victory over Elizabethtown (3-1), handing the Blue Jays their first defeat of the season in the process.
Junior Anna-Sophia Capizzi poured in a career-high 16 points, connecting on four of seven shots from three-point range. Megan Furch also added a career-best 14 points, while senior Katie Cook notched an eight-point, 10-rebound performance, reaching double-digit rebounds for the first time in he career. Macy Goldbach reached double figures in an all-around effort with 11 points, six rebounds, and four assists.
As a team, the Fords shot 38.1 percent from beyond the arc, and won the battle in the trenches with a 47-40 advantage on the glass.
The Fords fell into a 3-0 hole to begin things, but it would be the largest deficit they would face all day as Cook promptly drilled a three to tie the score. A Capizzi trey put Haverford ahead 8-6 midway through the first quarter and the Fords added a layup from Julianna Clark to take a four point lead with 4:11 left in the stanza. A Maddie Gallic runner with seven seconds left gave Haverford the one point lead after 10 minutes at 14-13.
Midway through the second quarter, the Fords turned the tide on a 16-16 tie as Cook found Goldbach down low for a layup. The lockdown full-court defense earned a turnover and Goldbach drilled a three on the ensuing possession, a swing that put Haverford up 21-16 with just over five minutes to play before the halftime intermission. Cook added another connection from downtown and the Fords pushed the lead to 24-18. With just under a minute remaining, Capizzi connected from three-point land to extend the advantage to eight at 29-21. The halftime score would read 29-24 as Marissa Emlet put three points on the Blue Jays tally, finishing the half with a game-high 14 points.
Haverford shot 37.9 percent in the first half, owning a slight edge on the glass with 22 rebounds to 19 for Elizabethtown.
The Fords stormed out of the halftime gates, buoyed by a 13-0 spurt in the third quarter as a 33-29 lead grew to 46-29. A Caroline Andersen layup off a pick and roll with under three minutes in the third gave the Fords a 17 point advantage. Lydia Lawson added a 5-0 run of her own to cut into the deficit, but the Fords went into the final quarter up 11 at 49-38. A layup from Capizzi extended the Haverford lead to 18 at 56-38, giving the Fords the largest lead of the contest with 7:22 to play and prompting Elizabethtown to call for timeout.
From that point, a late Blue Jays surge put Elizabethtown right back into the contest. A 15-1 run cut the lead to just two possessions with 57 seconds to play. Emlet missed a three with 17 seconds left, and Elizabethtown was forced to send Cook to the free-throw line. Cook made both of her shots and a desperation three from Veronica Christ rimmed out, sending the Fords to a 3-0 record.
Production up and down the box score was crucial once again for the Fords, as four players notched five or more rebounds. Andersen added three blocks.
Emlet finished with 14 points and nine rebounds, recording all of her field goals in the first half. Mikayla Ruth was also in double figures for the Blue Jays, adding 12 to the ledger.
Goldbach was named the Terry Greene Tip-Off Classic MVP while Capizzi was also named to the All-Tournament squad.
The Fords will now prepare for Centennial Conference action, as the Fords open up the 2018-19 conference slate on the campus of Ursinus on Tuesday, November 20 at 6 p.m. Last season, Haverford went 2-0 against the Bears.
