CARLISLE, Pa. - The Haverford College women's basketball team fell short in its attempt to sweep the season series from Dickinson College as the host Red Devils outlasted the Fords, 73-68, in double overtime in a Centennial Conference battle on Thursday night.
Trailing by six with just under two minutes remaining in the first overtime, Haverford (9-3, 6-2 CC) battled back as Nina Voith hit a free throw and Rachel Baskin stole the ball and converted a layup. Another Baskin steal with 29 ticks left on the clock gave the Fords an opportunity for the equalizer and freshman Emily Sweet stepped up and delivered from behind the arc at the 16-second mark on a set play after a Haverford timeout. Sweet's three-pointer knotted the score at 60-60 and the Fords' defense stood tall to force an additional extra session.
Haverford opened the scoring in the second overtime as Baskin drove the left side of the lane and hit a layup. Dickinson (8-4, 4-4) responded with six straight foul shots to take a four-point lead, 66-62, with two minutes remaining on the clock. Looking to rally once again, the Fords moved within two on two occasions in the next minute and a half but each time the Red Devils answered with two from the free throw line. Haverford managed to cut the deficit to three, 69-66, with 24 seconds left but an attempt to tie by Jacquelyne Pizzuto was off the mark and Dickinson clinched the game with four more foul shots over the remainder of the contest.
A typical Centennial battle ensued over the initial 20 minutes of action of the night as each squad made the other work for every bucket. The Red Devils opened their largest lead of the first half when Carmen Mann hit a layup at 13:25 to put them up by six at 12-6. Four different Fords contributed to a 9-0 run over the next four minutes as Haverford went ahead, 15-12. The teams exchanged the lead three times over the remainder of the half with Dickinson holding a slim 28-26 lead at intermission.
The second half followed suit with four ties and six lead changes including three lead changes in the final minute. The Fords rallied from a five-point deficit, 33-28, at the 15:22 mark with an eight-point surge. Voith converted a layup before Elizabeth Lynch struck for two consecutive three pointers to give Haverford a one-point lead, 36-35, with 12 minutes remaining. The Fords then moved ahead by six twice but the Red Devils came all the way back to forge a 49-49 tie at 2:44. After Dickinson went ahead 51-50 with a minute left, the two squads traded jumpers before Pizzuto hit a free throw at the eight-second mark to force overtime.
Baskin finished with 19 points to lead Haverford as she established a new career high for the second straight game. Pizzuto and Dominique Meeks chipped in with 11 points apiece while Lynch added 10. Voith tallied nine points and a career-high four steals. Meeks registered her third double-double of the season with 10 rebounds.
Bridget Borgese paced the Red Devils with 19 points including a 16-of-16 effort from the free throw line. Belma Mekic added 18 points and 16 rebounds. Dickinson finished 32-of-37 from the charity stripe overall including a 13-of-14 performance in the second overtime.
The Fords will look to bounce back on Saturday as they head to Baltimore to take on Johns Hopkins University in another Centennial road test. The match-up against the Blue Jays begins at 1 p.m.