WESTMINSTER, Md. – CUA bounced back from a tough loss in its opener by downing Richard Stockton 63-58 at the McDaniel Tip-off Tournament on Friday.   The Cardinals trailed by two at halftime, but a strong second half lifted CUA to its first win of the season.

Trailing 31-29 at the break, CUA came out of halftime and scored 14 of the first 19 points to go in front 43-36 with 14:09 to play.

The Cardinals upped their lead to 51-42 following two free throws by Kelli Josephsen with 9:15 on the clock, but Stockton answered with an 8-1 run to pull within two, 52-50.

CUA controlled the next six minutes of play, outscoring the Ospreys 6-0 on two pairs of foul shots and a Jill Woerner layup. 

An Emily Grabiak jumper with 41 seconds to play made it a 60-55 game, and the sophomore iced things with two free throws with only 17 ticks on the clock, to up the lead to four.

Grabiak finished with 10 points and 11 rebounds, while Woerner also scored 10.  Katarina Owunna pulled down 12 boards, while Grabiak and Jenny McGann shared the lead in assists with three apiece.

CUA totaled 11 steals and forced Richard Stockton into 25 turnovers.

LaTonya Oliver led the Ospreys with 12 points and Aspen Price-Perry added 11.  CUA held Richard Stockton to 31% shooting from the field, including 22% from 3-point range.

The game was tight during the early going before Richard Stockton opened up a 15-9 lead with 13:03 on the first half clock.

CUA pulled to within three on a Liz Briones jumper with 10:31 to go, and after Rachel Ferri hit a 3-pointer nearly six minutes later the margin remained three, 27-24.

Trailing 29-25 with just over a minute remaining, CUA scored four straight to tie the score.  But Richard Stockton's Kelsey Brown got to the hoop for a basket to send the Ospreys into halftime with a 31-29 lead.   

The Cardinals will face host McDaniel on Saturday afternoon at 3 in the tournament championship.  The Green Terror defeated Hollins 81-42 in Friday's opening game.