A 23-2 second-half run pushed #20 Lebanon Valley past Elizabethtown, 69-47, in the semifinal round of the Commonwealth Conference tournament Wednesday night.

The win puts the Dutchmen in position to defend their title in the CC championship game, set for Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. They'll host third-seeded Widener, who beat Messiah, 60-58, earlier in the night.

With the game tied 38-38, Kiely Chaklos hit a layup and was fouled for an and-one free throw that opened the rally. The team picked up 10 of its 23 run points from the line, repeatedly cashing in on the Blue Jays' mistakes.

The run lasted nine and a half minutes. Tierney Hiltz led Dutchmen scorers with nine points over that span and went on to score a game-high 19 points.

The Blue Jays effectively held Hiltz to just six points in the first half on a pair of three pointers. She shot 4-for-7 after halftime, which reflected a shift in the team's overall shooting from the field. The Dutchmen improved from 34.6 percent in the first half to 63.6 percent in the second.

"I thought we made some adjustments in the second half, crowding them out a little bit," head coach Todd Goclowskisaid.

Hiltz's final line read 19 points, seven rebounds, and four assists. She shot a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line, all of which came during LVC's mammoth run in the second half.

"She was clutch, and she hit big shots right at the time that we needed big shots to get us back into it," Goclowski said.

Other offensive standouts were Chaklos with 15 points, Renee Fritz with 11, and Caitlin Bach with eight. Chaklos finished with three assists.

Defensively, Bach led with nine rebounds. Fritz grabbed another eight with a pair of blocks.

Kendra Beittel led Blue Jay scorers with 16 points. Taylor Kreider, who came into the night scoring a team-high 11.8 points per game, was held to nine.

Elizabethtown head coach Yvonne Kauffman has coached the final game of her 42-year career after formally announcing her retirement in December. She finishes with 675 career wins at the helm of the Blue Jays and coached 46 total games against the Dutchmen. Each LVC player made it a point to hug and speak with her in the post-game handshake line.

"I have a lot of respect for Coach Kauffman," Goclowski said. "To coach and mentor young people for 42 years is quite an achievement. I'm glad we had a chance tonight to salute and honor her as a coach and as a mentor. It's bittersweet: it's exciting to advance but sad to say goodbye to a great coach."

LVC will play in its fifth consecutive conference finals game. The Dutchmen were crowned champions last season after beating Messiah 51-33. They lost to Widener in 2009 in a 75-72 heartbreaker that went to double overtime.