BOCA RATON, Fla. – Lynn University's women's basketball team snapped a four-game losing streak with a 64-56 victory over Nova Southeastern on Wednesday night. Chelsea Patterson led all scorers with 17 points while the Fighting Knights' defense held one of the top scoring teams and players in the Sunshine State Conference in check. Lynn evens its record at 8-8 overall and improves to 2-4 in SSC play.
Coming into the game with the league's leading scorer in Stephanie Sarosi (17.4 points per game) and the third leading offense (72.1 ppg) in the SSC, Nova Southeastern (10-5, 3-3 SSC) was stymied from the beginning. Sarosi finished with 11 points on 3-of-15 shooting and the Sharks fell 16 points shy of its season average.
The Blue & White defense held NSU to a measly 25.4% shooting from the field, forced 18 turnovers, recorded 10 steals and blocked eight shots, four of which came from Tashina Bailey. The sophomore forward tied her career-high with 10 points, grabbed eight rebounds and also logged a pair of steals.
Scorching shooting allowed LU to build a double-digit lead eight minutes into the game. With the contest knotted at four, Lynn started a 17-5 run behind three, three-pointers and a pair of buckets by Bailey in the paint.
Nova chipped away at the Knights' lead, getting to as close as six in the first half but Patterson and Kira Harvey knocked down baskets in the paint to go ahead 27-17. Marquis Lee scored five of her 15 points in the final two minutes of the first half to give Lynn a 37-25 lead at the break.
Depth became a problem for LU right from the get-go of the second period. Already thin due to some injuries, the Knights got into foul trouble when Amanda Schultz picked up two fouls within the opening 30 seconds and was sent to the bench with four fouls total. Patterson also picked up her fourth foul mid-way through the second stanza. Schultz eventually fouled out with 9:27 remaining in the game.
Lynn grasped to a double-digit lead for much of the period but could not do much as Nova Southeastern got to within six points with seven on the clock. Bailey snapped LU out of a minor funk with a fast-break layup and Lee brought the game to 54-44 with a pair of shots at the free-throw line. But Abbie Tepe charged her team pack with seven straight points and Lynn was back on its heels.
Dixon built the Blue & White lead back to seven with two free-throws only to see Jessica Russi and Priscilla Perez get the Sharks back to within three, 58-55, with a free-throw and trey. Lynn was able to hit its free-throws when it counted most, knocking down four-of-six attempts at the charity stripe over the final 48 seconds to seal the victory.
Lynn returns to the hardwood on Saturday, January 22, at 2 p.m. when it travels to Miami Shores, Fla., to battle long-time rival Barry. Fans can follow all of the action live by logging on to www.LynnFightingKnights.com and selecting "Game Central."
