Category: Women

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Sports Water Polo Women

Water polo goes 3-1 at home

By Scott Padula

Writer

The women’s water polo team went 1-3 last weekend during the Bison Invitational, beating Siena but falling to Brown, Wagner and No. 16 Hartwick.

The Orange and Blue started the tournament with a 13-7 victory over Siena but didn’t fare as well in their next three games. After falling to Brown 8-7 on Saturday night, the Bison closed out the tournament by losing to Wagner 9-8 and Hartwick 15-9. The Orange and Blue are now 3-5 on the season.

Against Siena, the Bison scored early and often, finding the back of the net eight times in the first two quarters. More impressively, the Bison played shutdown defense and prevented the Saints from scoring in the first 13:55 of play. During that time, Taylor Barnett ’15 led the Bison first half scoring barrage with three goals and an assist. Joining her with multi-goal performances were teammates Ariel Frankeny ’12 and Sayeh Bozorghadad ’15. In total, 12 different Bison received a point, while the team registered a season-high 22 steals. Orange and Blue goalie Brittany Connell ’12 also made a strong contribution with five saves in 32 minutes of play.

During Saturday’s nightcap, the Bison held a 2-1 lead at the end of the first quarter but were unable to stop the relentless Brown attack. The Bears scored four goals in the first four minutes of the second quarter and never looked back. Amanda Skonezney ’12 and Barnett led the Bison in scoring, netting three and two goals respectively, while Julianne Valdes ’14 and Hallie Kennan ’12 also had multi-point games with three and two assists respectively. Additionally, Connell was a wall for the Orange and Blue in goal, making a career-high 14 saves and shooting her career total above 200 saves. Before the game, the Bison honored their five seniors for their commitment and contributions to the program.

“I would say these close losses early in the season are good opportunities to learn from. We knew we could win all those games, and while we played our hearts out it just reminds us that we can and need to play a little harder to secure the win. We face most of those teams again and we are confident we can walk away with the win,” Valdes said.

After scoring four early goals against Wagner on Sunday, the Bison lost momentum as the Seahawks rattled off seven straight goals. Skonezney ended the drought with five minutes left in the fourth quarter. Less than a minute later, Heather Smith ’14 scored to bring the Bison within one, but the Orange and Blue were unable to score another goal and send the game to overtime.

Kennan led all Bison in points with four assists, while Smith and Barnett each scored a pair of goals. Rena Heim ’14 was also strong in goal for the Bison with a total of seven saves in 32 minutes of play.

“This weekend was tough because all of our small mistakes piled together to create our losses,” Barnett said. “As a whole, we all just need to work on the little things this week in practice. But I think from the Wagner game this weekend we learned that even if we are up we can’t play down to their level.”

In the final game of the weekend, the Bison were unable to overcome a six-goal first quarter by the Hawks and a four-goal deficit going into the half. In goal, Heim recorded another seven saves in 32 minutes of action, pushing her total to a team-high 32 saves on the seasons.

The Bison will continue their busy schedule as they head to Princeton this weekend for the Princeton Invitational. The Orange and Blue will first play CWPA rival and host team Princeton before facing four MAAC opponents.

 

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Featured Sports Track & Field Women

Women’s track earns 14th program title

By Katherine Harris

Writer

The women’s track and field team won the Patriot League Indoor Championships at Gerhard Fieldhouse last weekend, coming back from a 23-point deficit going into the final day of competition. The victory was the 14th in program history.

“I was absolutely thrilled with the team. I am so proud of everyone and I could not have asked for a better way to finish the indoor season,” Sarah Bella ’12 said. “Absolutely, having the championships at home was awesome. The energy from the crowd definitely helped the team and gave us the support we needed to go for the win.”

Bella led the way for the Bison as she grabbed their first victory of the weekend with a win in the shot put. Her 47’ 0.75’’ throw also put her second all-time in program history. Rebecca Misko ’12 also took fifth in the event for the Orange and Blue.

Emily Ando ’14 and Autumn Schellenberger ’14 took the top two spots in the pole vault while Alexandra Romanelli ’13 and Jessica Matsinger ’15 took second and fourth respectively in the triple jump.

Caroline Tolli ’13 and Beth Braunegg ’14 took first and third in the 1000 meters, and Tolli added a third-place spot in the distance medley and a fifth-place spot in the mile.

“I am so proud of our team,” Tolli said. “Everyone contributed in some way to these wins and we are all excited about accomplishing our team goal. To win a championship is special; to win both at home was simply incredible!”

The Bison also excelled in the 800 meters as Hana Casalnova ’14, Chelsea Lodato ’14, and Emily Waksmunski ’14 placed second, fourth and fifth respectively. Other highlights for the Orange and Blue included second-place finishes by Taylor Funk ’12 in the 60-meter hurdles and Sasha Hornock ’13 in the 60 meters, and a team 4×400 meters victory.

The Bison finished with 164 points, 40 points ahead of No. 2 Navy, and head coach Kevin Donner won the Coach of the Year award. The team kept an undefeated record of having won six out of six Patriot League Indoor Championships at home.

“Our ladies did an outstanding job staying focused throughout the entire weekend and recognized the big picture of a three-day meet.  Although we were behind by quite a few points after day two, we knew that Navy had completed their best events and that we were set up well for day three,” Donner said. “The cheering and crowd really helped our athletes and they will cherish this great accomplishment for the rest of their lives.”

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Featured Sports Swimming & Diving Women

Bison take third in PL

By Lindsay Regruto

Senior Writer

The Orange and Blue claimed their first-ever gold medal finish in diving when Tara Bolye ’15 earned first place on the one-meter at the Patriot League Championship last weekend in Annapolis, Md. The overall success of the women’s diving team earned diving coach Errol Carter the Patriot League Diving Coach of the Meet award. The women’s swimming and diving team ended the three-day meet in third place behind Colgate and Navy with a score of 593 points.

“Patriots was an amazing experience, the atmosphere on deck was unreal,” Boyle said. “The whole meet was so exciting, and it was great to see how everyone’s hard work paid off.”

Saturday’s conclusion saw a number of new program top-10 times and records set. Kelly Pontecorvo ’14 broke her own school record in the 1,650-yard freestyle with a time of 16:39.13. Kaitlyn Sweeney ’12 also set a new eighth-place mark in program history in the 200 butterfly, touching the wall at 2:06.84, with teammate Stephanie Koziol ’15 finishing close behind (2:07.32) to set a new ninth-place mark. The women ended the meet with a close third-place finish in the 400 freestyle relay, just two seconds behind second-place Colgate.

“I think as a whole, Saturday night was the most exciting, especially the 400 freestyle relays,” Pontecorvo said.  “Both our men’s and women’s teams pushed through until the very end and it was awesome to cheer on those relays right down to the very finish of the meet … When the goal is just to put it all on the line, it’s amazing to see what we can accomplish.”

By Friday the Orange and Blue had put themselves solidly in third place with a score of 363, 79 points ahead of fourth-place Army but 111 behind second-place Colgate. Sweeney came in eighth in the 100 fly to earn her team points. Lauren Perry ’15 (200 free), Emily Norton ’15 (100 breast), Kozial and Elizabeth Porcellio ’13 (400 IM) and Jennifer Brennan ’14 (100 back) all earned program top-five times.

“We saw some very fast swimming and spectacular diving on our women’s team, especially from our underclassmen,” Sweeney said. “As a veteran and captain, I was proud of the support the upperclassmen provided and how well the underclassmen prepared and performed … I think that we really stepped up to the challenge to put our best effort forward.”

Thursday was a strong start for the Orange and Blue. Katie Hetherington ’15 took second place in the three-meter dive while teammates Boyle and Tori Molchany ’15 followed with fifth and seventh respectively. Combined, the three earned 43 points for the Orange and Blue.

“It was cool to see how far the team had come this year because everyone has worked very hard,” Hetherington said. “I know from a diving standpoint that we all improved a lot this year and it’s going to be exciting to see how we do next year.”

The relays were also very successful on Thursday. The 200 free and 400 medley relay teams both swam for the sixth-best marks in program history in their respective events. In addition, Pontecorvo set the second-best time in school history in the 500 free (4:56.61). Seven athletes made it to the A finals of their events and three set new top-10 times.

“I was very pleased with the women’s swimming and diving team’s performance overall this past week at the Patriot League Championships,” head coach Dan Schinnerer said. “We definitely have made progress from last year both in scoring more points as a team and in closing the gap on the teams that placed in front of us … The women’s team is very young.  We only had one senior on our championship squad and I think our future is very bright.”

 

Categories
Basketball Sports Women

Bison fall in two league games

By Ajan Caneda

Writer

In the women’s basketball team’s final home game of the season, a last-second American three-point shot gave the first-place Eagles the edge they needed to come away with a 62-59 victory. Despite two second-half runs by the Bison, American kept its undefeated conference record intact.

Five ties and six lead changes in the first half kept the gap between the two teams within single digits. A three-point basket by guard Shelby Trotter ’14 broke a 17-17 tie with 8:40 left, but American ended the half on a 12-4 run that gave them a 29-24 lead at halftime.

The Eagles continued their balanced shooting and built a 10-point lead at the 15:10 remaining mark of the second half. The Orange and Blue answered as a three-point play by Felicia Mgbada ’14 sparked a 15-0 run for the Bison. Three-pointers by Shelby Romine ’14 and Rachel Voss ’13 capped the run. American regained control, taking a 59-52 lead with 2:43 to go, but the Bison fought back with another 7-0 run. With 14 seconds left, Alyssa Dunn ’13 hit two free throws that knotted the game at 59. But American nailed a buzzer-beating three-point shot that gave it the victory.

Dunn had 20 points and was eight-for-eight from the free throw line. Romine and Mgbada were also in double figures scoring 11 and 10 points, respectively.

On Senior Night last Saturday, the Bison’s winning streak stopped at three as shooting woes downed the Orange and Blue 49-38 against Holy Cross.

Both teams shot 20 percent from the field in the first half. After the Bison cut the Holy Cross lead to two with 7:55 left, the Orange and Blue went scoreless for the remainder of the half, allowing the Crusaders to gain a 19-12 lead to close out the first half.

“Unfortunately, you have shooting nights like those and I thought our defense was good enough to win,” interim head coach Bill Broderick said. “We held them under 50 points, but we simply just did not make enough shots to win the game.”

Holy Cross’s field goal percentage improved to 54.2 percent in the second half, allowing the Crusaders to build a 15-point lead in the early minutes of the half. Dunn scored a three-point play that capped a 14-4 run for the Bison, trimming the lead to five with 4:14 remaining. But shooting struggles sunk the Orange and Blue as the Crusaders closed the game with a 10-4 run, sealing the win.

Lindsay Horbatuck ’13 posted her third consecutive double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Dunn was the leading scorer for the Bison with 13 points.

“I think that we showed that we could make a comeback from a 15-point deficit against a good team and that we are never out of it when we fire on all cylinders,” Broderick said. “This game showed us that our offense is still a work in progress, which is understandable given the short amount of time that we have had to install our new system.”

The Bison close out the regular season at Navy on Saturday.

 

Categories
Basketball Sports Women

Bison Athlete of the Week: Shelby Romine ’14

By Chris McCree

Sports Editor

 

Player Profile:

Shelby Romine

Sophomore

Guard

Hometown: Centreville, Va.

Major: Undeclared

 

Season Statistics:

Games: 26

Minutes/game:  36.2

Point/game: 10

Rebounds/ game: 4.2

Assists/game: 3.1

 

After an 11-point effort during the first Patriot League women’s basketball game against Colgate last week, Shelby Romine ’14 netted a season-high 26 points at Lafayette on Saturday, carrying the Orange and Blue to their first two-game winning streak of the season. The sophomore guard shot an impressive 60 percent from the field, going three-for-four behind the three-point arc and 11-for-13 on free throws. Romine also dished out five assists and grabbed three rebounds for the Orange and Blue, while turning the ball over just one time during her 34 minutes of play.

Trailing by as much as 14 points in the contest and scoring just 21 points in the first 17 minutes of play, the Bison offense rallied behind Romine. In the second half alone, Romine scored 20 points, getting to the foul line 11 times and hitting two three-pointers to help the Bison outscore the Leopards by 15 in the final 20 minutes of play.

With her high scoring performance, Romine reached the 600-point scoring mark. In just her second year of play, Romine has already become a team leader and was appointed co-captain this season. She currently leads the team in both points and assists. Currently in the midst of a disappointing 4-21 season, the Orange and Blue will look to ride their mini-winning streak through the end of this season. Returning all but one player next season, Romine and the Bison will be poised for a successful run come the start of the 2012-2013 season.

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Basketball Sports Women

Women’s basketball posts consecutive league wins

By Ajan Caneda

Writer

The women’s basketball team avenged a previous loss against Lehigh with a 62-56 win at Bethlehem, Pa. on Wednesday, picking up its third consecutive victory.

Shelby Romine ’14 scored a game-high 23 points, including a jumper that pushed the lead to double digits 11 minutes into the first half, capping a 10-0 run for the Orange and Blue. The Bison also scored 15 points off 13 turnovers in the first half. Christina Chukwuedo ’12 laid in a basket that gave the Bison a 37-25 lead at halftime.

The Orange and Blue carried their momentum early into the second half as they built their lead to 19 with 10:31 remaining. The Mountain Hawks fought back, cutting the deficit to single digits with 4:09 left in the game. Lehigh hit two free throws that made it a one-possession game in the final minute. It would not be enough for the Mountain Hawks as Lindsay Horbatuck ’13 clinched the victory with two free throws of her own. She had a second straight double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds while Rachel Voss ’13 had 11 points.

“We will continue to keep working hard every day, and use this confidence from the past two games to finish out our season strong,” Romine said. “I truly believe we can make a run to win the Patriot League championship.”

The Bison erased an early 14-point deficit to come away with a 65-54 win at Lafayette last Saturday. Romine nailed a three-pointer to start the game, but the Orange and Blue fell behind as the Leopards went on a 23-6 run that gave them their largest lead. A 20-10 Bison run trimmed the Lafayette lead to four at halftime. Both teams shot 46.4 percent in the first half on 13 for 28 shooting.

“We started the Lafayette game slow, and they got off to a decent lead pretty quickly,” Horbatuck said. “We knew that we needed to stop their post players because that was where almost all of their points were coming from.”

The Orange and Blue stayed strong defensively as they held Lafayette to 33.3 percent shooting in the second half. A Romine three-pointer jump-started a 15-0 run that gave the Bison a 14-point lead. The Leopards were unable to force a comeback as Romine and Horbatuck hit some late free throws that iced the game for the Bison.

Romine scored 26 points, had five assists, and was 11 for 13 from the free throw line. Horbatuck had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Alyssa Dunn ’13 also scored in double figures with 11 points.

“We focused on boxing out, especially on their post players to try and limit their offensive rebounds,” interim head coach Bill Broderick said. “We also worked on our help-side defense so that our post players felt more comfortable trying to get around while defending on the block.”

The Bison will look to finish strong at home as they battle Holy Cross on Saturday and American on Senior Night next Wednesday.

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Sports Track & Field Women

Women’s track dominates

By Katherine Harris

Writer

The women’s track and field team put up some impressive performances in the Bucknell Winter Classic on Saturday. With only a week until the Patriot League Championships, this meet was an important last stepping stone for many of the Bison.

“Some people used this past weekend to rest for Leagues, others used it as a tuneup, others were competing for a spot on the Leagues roster and others were competing in their last indoor meet and hoping for good performances,” head coach Kevin Donner said.

With seven gold medals and many other top finishes, the Orange and Blue looked as strong as ever while competing on their home turf. Abby Monaghan ’13, Sarah Bella ’12 and Kathryn Wahls ’13 swept the top three spots in the weight throw. Monaghan’s first place throw of 53’ 2.5’’ also moved her into sixth all-time in the school record books, and Bella also placed first in the shot put.

“It seems that the pieces are coming together in all of the different events and that all of our hard work and hours of training are paying off,” said Monaghan. “The women’s team is coming together like a family and that to me is wonderful to witness.”

The Bison continued to best the field as Alexandra Romanelli ’13 took first place in the triple jump. In the pole vault, Emily Ando ’14 took first, while Rebekka Vuojolainen ’15 and Autumn Schnellenberger ’14 were part of a three-way tie for second. With their vaults, both Ando and Vuojolainen made the record books, with Ando tying for fifth all-time and Vuojolainen making an appearance at eighth.

Along with the impressive field performances, the Orange and Blue also had many top finishers in the track events. Kylie Pearse ’15 won the 1,000 meters, followed closely by teammate Kady Weisner ’14 in second. Hana Casalnova ’14 took the gold in the 500 meters and the Bison swept the top three spots in the 200 meters with Jennifer Zymet ’14, Kim Nagotko ’15 and Sasha Hornock ’13 leading the way.

“This past weekend we had a lot of different missions and many of our goals were accomplished,” Donner said. “I was very pleased with the results and now we look forward to a great Patriot League Championship.”

The Bison host the Patriot League Championships in Gerhard Fieldhouse starting today at 12 p.m. through Sunday.

Categories
Sports Water Polo Women

Water polo splits games at Princeton

By Scott Padula

Staff Writer

The women’s water polo team started its 2012 season with two wins and two losses last weekend at the Princeton Invitational. The Bison opened the tournament by dropping games to Harvard 14-5 and Colorado State 9-7. The Orange and Blue were able to turn things around on Sunday by defeating George Washington 16-8 before wrapping up the weekend with a 9-3 win over Mercyhurst.

In the first game of the invitational, the Orange and Blue matched Harvard in the first quarter but could only post one goal in the second as Harvard took a 7-3 lead into the half. The Bison could not overcome the deficit in the second half.

Hallie Kennan ’12 led the Orange and Blue in points with two goals and two assists. Krystle Morgan ’13 was another highlight for the Bison with six ejections drawn. Stephanie Ovalle ’14, Taylor Barnett ’15 and Shannon Carroll ’13 also registered points for the Bison. Rena Heim ’14 was also impressive for the Orange and Blue, recording 10 saves.

In the nightcap, the Orange and Blue fell behind early, allowing Colorado State to score six goals in the first quarter. Behind the tutelage of first year head coach John McBride, the Orange and Blue tightened their defense and mounted a furious comeback. Although they only allowed three goals over the next three quarters, the Bison were unable to steal a come-from-behind victory. Kennan, Amanda Skonezney ’12 and Morgan all scored two goals while Skonezney also recorded two assists. Heim had another good game in goal, making eight saves.

In their first action Sunday, the Bison started the game strong against George Washington, taking a 9-6 advantage into the intermission and never looking back. Skonezney, Heather Smith ’14, Julianne Valdes ’14, Morgan and Barnett were among the Orange and Blue to find the back of the net at least twice. In total, 12 different Bison registered a point.

In the final game of the weekend, the Orange and Blue dominated the first half, outscoring Mercyhurst 8-0. The impressive defensive effort was marked by denying the Lakers 10 out of 11 times in six-on-five situations. Skonezney and Barbara Peterson ’15 carried the load on offense, accounting for seven of the nine goals. Other Bison who registered a point included Kennan, Carroll, Smith and Brittany Connell ’12. Aside from recording an assist, Connell was also solid in net with four saves.

“The first day was still a learning experience for us. We’ve been practicing only against each other for the past month so figuring out how to defend or score against other teams took some time. By the second day of games we started playing our type of water polo. We made significant improvements by our fourth game and we hope to pick up where we left off for our home tournament this upcoming weekend,” Kennan said.

The Orange and Blue have four more games this weekend when they host the Bison Invitational. The Bison will face Siena and Brown on Saturday before they see Wagner and No. 15 Hartwick on Sunday. 

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Lacrosse Sports Women

Goldsborough returns as coach

Andrew Lichtenauer

Senior Writer

After a short stint with the Bison in 2003 and 2004, Randall Goldsborough has returned as head coach of the women’s lacrosse team. Goldsborough, a former standout lacrosse player at the University of Maryland and the U.S. women’s National Team, led the Orange and Blue to .500 or better records and consecutive Patriot League Tournament appearances during her two seasons. The Bucknellian talked to Goldsborough this past week about the upcoming season.

The Bucknellian: I understand that your team is currently one of the youngest in the country. Does this influence your coaching strategies in any way?

Goldsborough: It definitely does not influence how we do things. It’s better actually that they are so young because they are impressionable and we can make a bigger impact quicker because of it. I rarely change my coaching style for age–-I just throw it all at them and see what they absorb the quickest, really. We are in a good place with our age because each year they will grow tremendously from their experiences with us both on and off the field.

The Bucknellian: What is it about the University and its athletics department that has left a lasting impression on you?

Goldsborough: The support and pride you feel working here is huge. The administration really cares about each program; the coaches support each other by not only attending games, but working with them as well. The student-athletes support each other and attend each other’s games. It’s just a feel-good place to work.

The Bucknellian: What expectations do you have for the team this season?

Goldsborough: This season I expect the team to understand our system and not just go with the flow. I expect them to work as hard as they can and then work harder. I expect them to learn to push their teammates and how to handle being pushed and challenged. I for sure expect them to compete every day to prepare us for our games. In terms of outcomes, I can’t say, but if we do all of the above we could really turn this program around and surprise a lot of people, including ourselves.

The Bucknellian: The Bison opened this season with a 25-3 loss to Duke, currently the No. 5 team in the nation. Is there anything the team can take away from that loss?

Goldsborough: I think the biggest thing to take away is that at the highest levels, this game is so fast, so strong and so strategic. Executing the fundamentals flawlessly is so crucial to success because even just one turnover could lead to a loss. It really allowed the team to see how important the little things are and that you have to be incredibly mentally and physically tough to compete in the Top 10.

The Bucknellian: What do you think are the biggest challenges you are going to face this season as a team?

Goldsborough: I think the biggest challenge really has nothing to do with our competition.  We are really focusing on changing the culture within the program, asking for a bigger commitment from the players, really seeking out nationally ranked talent in our future recruiting classes to compliment the competitiveness that already exists on the team.  Everything is new for the players – we are installing all new defenses and offenses, the way we play the midfield and press is all different and new – it’s quite a lot of information we are asking the players to absorb, understand, and execute and we are demanding that they do so.

 

Categories
Basketball Sports Women

Women’s basketball claims conference victory

Ajan Caneda ’15

Staff Writer

The women’s basketball team snapped a 13-game losing streak with a 67-45 rout of Colgate at home on Wednesday night.

The Bison held the Raiders to 27 percent shooting while the Orange and Blue went 42 percent from the field. The Bison led by as much as 22 in the first half before taking a 41-24 lead into halftime. They never slowed the momentum as they picked up their first win since Dec. 6 and their first Patriot League win of the season.

“I was really proud of the effort that our team put out for the entire 40 minutes,” interim head coach Bill Broderick said. “I definitely thought we took another big step in the right direction in reaching our goal of playing our best basketball of the season come Patriot League Tournament time.”

The Bison outscored Colgate 40-16 in points in the paint, 20-1 in points off turnovers, and 22-6 in bench points. The Orange and Blue also had a 58-33 edge in rebounds.

Rachel Voss ’13 was the leading scorer with 16 points while Alyssa Dunn ’13 and Shelby Romine ’14 also scored in double figures. Lindsay Horbatuck ’13 had a near double-double with nine points and 16 rebounds.

The Bison narrowly pulled off their first Patriot League win a game earlier but ended up losing 60-56 at Army on Saturday. It was a close contest from the beginning, as both teams tried to gain the upper hand in the first half. Guard Christina Chukwuedo ’12 nailed a jumper that gave the Orange and Blue their first lead of the game with 6:58 remaining in the first half. The Bison outscored Army 16-8 in points in the paint in the first half but Army scored 16 points off turnovers. The Black Knights carried a 30-27 lead at halftime.

“Going into the Army game we were really fired up after losing by one point to Navy the week before,” Horbatuck said. “Every game we are figuring out our identity more and more. We are realizing what it’s going to take to get to the next level.”

Both teams continued their consistent shooting in the second half. At the 9:07 remaining mark, Voss made a pair of free throws that gave the Orange and Blue a 46-45 lead. Neither team could pull ahead, as the leads stayed in single digits the entire game. The game was knotted at 52-52 with 3:44 left before Army went on an 8-0 run that sealed the victory.

Horbatuck finished with 15 points and seven rebounds. Dunn and Voss were also in double figures with 14 and 10 points, respectively.

“During the last few minutes of the game, we couldn’t seem to get the definitive defensive stops that we needed,” Dunn said. “That coupled with our less-than-ideal execution on the offensive side of the ball left us on the losing end of a hard-fought battle.”

The Bison will look to ride the momentum from their win in their game at Lafayette on Saturday.