The Lehman Lightning welcomed in the nation's top Division III program, No. 1 ranked Amherst College, on Saturday evening as part of the Third Annual CUNY Coaches vs. Cancer Classic, and the Lord Jeffs lived up to their advance billing, hammering the Lightning 101-60 to drop Lehman to 5-4 on the season.

The Lord Jeffs came storming out of the gate behind a crisp offensive attack and the three-point marksmanship of Shannon Finucane. The Amherst junior exploded for 18 points in only 20 minutes of action, 10 points above her season average, thanks to 5-for-8 shooting from beyond the arc.

As Lehman tried to feel its opponent out in the early going, Amherst went to work, taking a quick 7-2 lead behind baskets by Jaci Daigneault and Kristyn Dunleavy. Finucane's first three of the game gave the Lord Jeffs the 10-2 advantage and forced a timeout from Lehman head coach Eric Harrison, who tried to quell the momentum building in Amherst's favor.

A jumper by Amanda De La Cruz cut the Lightning deficit to 10, but Finucane hit two more three-pointers in a span of four possessions to push the Amherst lead to 20-5 with 13:05 remaining in the half. Less than two minutes later Finucane drilled her fourth triple of the half to extend the Lord Jeffs lead to 27-5 and essentially put the game in cruise control for Amherst, who took a 59-23 lead into halftime.

Aside from Finucane's long distance display that led to 12 first half points, Dunleavy also posted a dozen of her own, knocking down two three-pointers in the process. For the half, the Lord Jeffs shot 8-for-13 from downtown.

The Lehman full court press, which has been so effective this season, causing nearly 29 turnovers per game, was handled rather well by the Lord Jeffs. In building its large first half margin, Amherst committed only 10 turnovers.

Though never getting close enough to threaten Amherst, the Lightning fought hard throughout the second half, enjoying limited success in spurts.

One bright spot for the Lightning was Louvinia Hayes, who played with a banged-up non-shooting hand but who repeatedly forced the action and took the ball to the basket time after time. Her aggressiveness earned her 20 trips to the free throw line over the course of the game, helping her finish the night with 21 points. She was joined in double figures by De La Cruz, who finished with 18 points, and Paula Robinson, who canned several late three-pointers to finish with 14 points.

With the win, No. 1 ranked Amherst improved to 10-0.

Things don't get any easier for the Lightning as No. 14 ranked Mary Washington visits the Bronx on Tuesday night.