Feb 24, 2012
The Bethany College women's basketball team fell behind top seed Thomas More early and could not rally back, as the Bison were eliminated from the PAC Tournament with an 83-56 loss in the semifinal Friday night.
The defeat drops the Bison's record to 16-11, while the Saints improve to 23-4 and advance to the PAC Title Game Saturday against #2 Saint Vincent at 5 p.m.
After TMC opened the game with a 12-0 run, Bethany answered with 13 of the next 19 points and trimmed the Saints' lead to 18-13 following a lay-in by junior Kayla Taormina. Thomas More would pull away over the final 13 minutes of the half and behind 21 points from Allison Long, the home team built a 46-27 halftime cushion.
Bethany posted an 8-4 spurt early in the second half, but Thomas More, off the strength of a 20-7 run, extended their lead to 74-44 with 6:55 left. The Saints finished the game shooting 53 percent from the floor and a 44-26 rebounding advantage.
The Bison had one player register double digits, as senior Renee Shepherd hit for 16 points, a season-high. Senior Katelynn Hackathorn notched nine points and senior Anne Wilson chipped in eight. Leading BC on the glass was Taormina with seven rebounds and senior Audra Droginske passed out a team-best five assists.
For the Saints, Long finished with a game-high 27 points and Devin Beasley scored 17 markers.
The Bison will find out Monday if their season will continue when the ECAC South Region Tournament bids are announced.