Syracuse, N.Y. – The Le Moyne College women's basketball team outscored the Mercyhurst University Lakers 17-11 in the fourth quarter to claim a 60-58 Northeast Conference victory Saturday afternoon at Ted Grant Court in the Dolphins' Play4Kay game.

Le Moyne scored a season-high 38 points in the paint during the win, and shot 24-of-58 from the field (41.4%), which marks the most field goals that they have scored in a game this season. The 'Phins compiled 16 assists during the 40 minutes, which is their second-highest total so far in 2024-25, and the  most that they have recorded in conference play.

Freshman guard Eli Clark (Oakhurst, N.J./Ocean Township), graduate forward Haedyn Roberts (Holland Patent, N.Y./Holland Patent) and junior guard Sierra Linnin (Valley Cottage, N.Y./Albertus Magnus) each scored in double figures for the 'Phins to help avenge a 63-52 loss at Mercyhurst earlier this season.

Clark paced the Dolphins with a season-high 16 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field to go along with five assists and three rebounds in a team-high 34 minutes played.
Roberts tallied 11 points and six rebounds, marking the eighth consecutive game that she has scored in double figures, a streak that began with her 13-point effort at Mercyhurst on January 9.

Linnin provided 10 points, a season-high tying three assists and a career-high tying seven rebounds, while senior forward Brianna Williams (Brampton, Ontario/Southwest Academy/Hartford) added eight points, and senior guard Emily Florvil (Brooklyn, N.Y./Nazareth) contributed seven points, seven rebounds, three assists and a career-high tying four steals.

Florvil also pulled down four of Le Moyne's eight offensive rebounds during the contest, which ties her season high. The Dolphins also limited the Lakers to just three offensive rebounds, the fewest they have allowed in a game this season.

Mercyhurst junior forward Bailey Kuhns led all scorers with a season-high 33 points on 14-of-24 shooting from the field in 38 minutes played, and surpassed 1,000 career points during the game. Junior guard Jenna Van Schaik registered 15 points, four assists and two steals for the Lakers, as she and Kuhns combined for all but 10 of Mercyhurst's points during the matchup.

Mercyhurst held a 14-6 lead over the Dolphins after 10 minutes of action, then established a 28-18 lead at the intermission, and led by as many as 16 in the third quarter, but the Dolphins fought their way back into the game with the help of an 18-6 run to close the third, and had six players score in the final period as they gained their first lead of the game with 4:36 remaining and held on to win with timely buckets and key defensive stops.

Le Moyne improved to 4-1 at home in Northeast Conference play with the victory, and in all four of those wins they trailed heading into the fourth quarter. In its four conference victories, Le Moyne outscored its opponent in the fourth quarter by a combined tally of 77-44.

Le Moyne's only conference home loss came in overtime last time out against Saint Francis.

As a team the Dolphins grabbed 28 defensive rebounds, their second-most in a game this season, led by seven from Linnin. Le Moyne forced Mercyhurst into 17 turnovers Saturday, the third-most they've forced in a game this season.

A layup from Williams off a nice entry pass from graduate guard Megan Bodziony (Wakefield, R.I./St. Andrew's School/Fordham/Bryant) tied the score at 4-4 with 4:03 left in the opening quarter, then the Lakers closed the frame on a 10-2 run, with all 10 points coming from Kuhns.

Le Moyne then began the second quarter on an 8-0 run to tie the game, but the Laker responded with a 14-0 run, via eight points from Van Schaik and six from Kuhns to open up a 28-14 advantage.

Roberts ended the run with a layup in the paint at the 1:08 mark, then drew a foul and sank two free throws during the next Le Moyne possession to make it a 10-point game at the intermission.

Through the first two quarters, Kuhns and Van Schaik accounted for all 28 of Mercyhurst's points.

A made free throw from Van Schaik with 6:51 remaining in the third quarter gave the Lakers their largest lead of the game at 41-25.

Le Moyne went on a quick 8-0 spurt with two three-point field goals from Linnin sandwiching a layup from Williams to cut the deficit back to single digits.

Clark crossed over her defender and sank a pullup jumper at the 2:29 mark of the third, then Florvil came up with a steal, drove to the hoop, drew a foul and converted one free throw to make it 45-41 in favor of Mercyhurst.

Ava Waid dropped in a floater at the 1:33 mark, and Le Moyne junior guard Michelina Lombardi (Wynantskill, N.Y./Averill Park), who made her second start of the season during the contest, made two free throws with just under a minute left in the penultimate period to cut the Mercyhurst lead to 47-43 heading into the fourth.

The Dolphins shot 8-of-13 from the field during the fourth, while limiting the Laker to 5-of-13, including 1-of-6 from three-point range. Neither team shot a free throw in the final 10 minutes.

The two sides traded baskets during the first four minutes of the fourth frame, then a driving layup from Florvil at the 5:22 mark made it a one-point game, and a three-pointer from Roberts, off an assist from Clark, during the next possession gave the Dolphins a 56-54 advantage, their first lead of the game.

Williams converted a layup in the paint with 2:53 remaining in the fourth to make it 58-54 in favor of the 'Phins, but Kuhns scored back-to-back baskets to tie the game at 58-58 with 2:15 on the clock.

Williams put the Dolphins ahead for good, via an assist from Linnin, with a fastbreak layup at the 1:31 mark.

Le Moyne influenced two missed Mercyhurst shots in the final 1:05 of the game to close out the conference win and improve to 4-5 in league play.

The Lakers dropped to 5-6 against NEC competition following the setback.

The Le Moyne College women's basketball team will begin a three-game road swing on February 13 at Wagner College, before traveling to Chicago State University for a matchup with the Cougars on February 15.


GAME HIGHLIGHTS:


POSTGAME INTERVIEW WITH HEAD COACH NICK DIPILLO AND FRESHMAN GUARD ELI CLARK: