FREDERICK, Md.--The Hood College women's basketball team (4-4, 0-3 CAC) was unable to sustain its sizzling start, falling 65-56 in Capital Athletic Conference action to the visiting Frostburg State University Bobcats (3-4, 1-2 CAC) Wednesday at the Odom Fitness Center at Fort Detrick.
Hood connected on six of its first seven shots to take a 13-5 lead just 4:55 into the opening half. Five different Blazers contributed baskets in the run, including sophomore Emily Maerz, who rounded the top of the arc and after receiving the pass from Allyson Lethbridge drained the trey. This however would be the only three-pointer for the Blazers in the first half. Hood, the top three-point shooting team in the league, shot 1-for-5 from distance in the half, only half their average (.400) for the season.
Frostburg used a 12-0 run to turn an eight-point deficit into a four-point lead, holding the Blazers without a field goal for a total of 7:36. Hood was unable to reclaim the lead as the Bobcats took a 28-24 edge heading into the break.
For the first five minutes of the second half, the two teams would trade points as the Blazers kept pace with the Bobcats. Frostburg gradually separated the distance from Hood and led by as many as 16 (57-41) with 3:50 left to play.
The Blazers did not give up. With free throws and a three pointer from Kameran Evans, Hood cut the lead down to a five-point difference (61-56) with 24 seconds left to play. Hood was forced to foul the Bobcats down the stretch, but the top foul-shooting team in the CAC proved their mettle, sinking all six shots from the stripe in the final 41 seconds to clinch the win. FSU connected on 17-of-19 from the line on the night.
Lethbridge led three Blazers in double figures with 15 points. Briana White tallied 14 points and a career-best four steals. FSU's Mercedes White led all scorers with 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting. Hood did a nice job containing the Bobcats' leading scorer, Mindy Sharp, who misfired on her first nine attempts from the field and finished with just five points.
The Blazers will travel to St. Mary's College (Md.) Saturday for their next matchup at 2 p.m.