Bulldogs unable to hold onto nine-point lead, losing 70-62 to Cornell Sunday afternoon in Smithfield

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – After leading by as much as nine points in the third quarter, the Bryant University women's basketball team was unable to hold on, giving up the lead in the fourth quarter against Cornell, resulting in a 70-62 loss, Sunday afternoon in Smithfield.

The Bulldogs (0-2) gained momentum towards the end of the first quarter, when freshman Kierra Palmer (Aberdeen, Md.) hit a three to bring Bryant within three of the Big Red (1-1). A few trips later, Palmer crossed up a Big Red defender in the paint and drove to her right. The guard missed the layup, but junior Alex Klein (Waterloo, Ont.) was there to clean up at the rim to help the Bulldogs close out the quarter down by five.

At the start of the second period, Palmer was on fire, draining three attempts from behind the arc to pull the Bulldogs within one, before sophomore Ivory Bailey (Wyomissing, Pa.) hit a trey of her own to start Bryant's 17-minute winning stretch of the game.

With the momentum on their side, every Bulldog began to set up and produce. Senior Maureen Leahy (Springfield, Pa.) saw a few minutes in the first half, moving to help on defense and denied the Big Red's leading scorer Nia Marshall of any good looks at the basket.

Junior center Morgan Olander (Mansfield, Conn.) got into a rhythm, after nailing the turn-around hook with her right hand to help the Bulldogs to a 6-0 run in the second quarter. Just before the half, Palmer connected with Olander, as the guard passed to the center sprinting rim-runner, leading to an Olander lefty layup. Palmer found Olander again, threading the needle through a sea of Big Red for a Bulldogs' two-pointer.

At the start of the second half, Bryant led Cornell, 36-29, before the teams began trading baskets and turnovers. Midway through the third period, senior Tiersa Winder (Baltimore, Md.) hit a three from downtown to put the Bulldogs up by eight, leading into the media timeout.

Out of the break, Cornell began chiseling away at the lead, when Kerri Moran hit a three to put the Big Red within five, with two minutes remaining in the quarter. Only a few possessions later, Nicholle Aston's jump shot off the inbounds play puts Cornell within one. Senior Breanna Rucker (Cincinnati, Ohio) then hit two free-throws to distance the Bulldogs at the close of the third, with the score set at 47-44.

Cornell carried their scoring spurt into the fourth quarter, when Caroline Shelquist buried a three at the top of the key, followed by a strong showing from Marshall, who hit back-to-back layups for the Big Red to go on a 9-0 run and put them up six points, with 6:30 remaining in the game.

The Bulldogs showed signs of a comeback, when Rucker came up with a key offensive rebound and Winder nailed a three-pointer, with three minutes left in the game, but Cornell pressed on, finding ways to score late on the shock clock. On one trip down for the Big Red, Megan LeDuc nailed a midrange jumper off the dribble with only seconds on the shot clock and in similar fashion threw up a desperation three from 25-feet out to put Cornell up by 10, (66-56) with just over a minute to play.

Cornell's scoring down the stretch solidified the Big Red 70-62 victory, leaving the Bulldogs 0-2 to start the season.

Bailey led the Black and Gold for the second-straight game, with 15 points, while also recording four assists and five rebounds. Palmer was 4-6 from three-point land, giving her a season and career-high of 12 points, while she also dished out four helpers. Rucker ripped down a total of nine rebounds, five coming on the offensive end and finished with 12 points. Winder rounded out the double-digit scorers with 11, after going 2-2 from the line and 3-11 from behind the arc.

The Bulldogs are back in action a week from today on Saturday, Nov. 21 at 1 p.m., when Vermont visits Smithfield.