HAVERFORD, Pa. - Nina Voith tallied a game-high 22 points and Elizabeth Lynch chipped in with 16 as the Haverford College women's basketball team remained perfect at home this season with a 64-56 Centennial Conference victory over visiting Gettysburg College on Tuesday night.
The Fords (10-1, 6-1 CC) improved their record to 5-0 at Gooding Arena by beating the defending conference champion Bullets (7-5, 3-4) for just the second time in program history and first time at Haverford.
Tuesday's matchup featured two of the top defenses in the conference and the squads proceeded to battle in the opening 20 minutes as there were five lead changes and four ties.
Haverford took a one-point lead into intermission (27-26) and then proceeded to break open the tight contest with a 20-10 run over the opening 10 minutes of the second half. The Fords pestered the visitors into four turnovers and a 4-for-12 showing from the field over the pivotal span that produced a double-digit advantage, 47-36, for the hosts with 10 minutes to go in the game. A long-range jumper from Voith capped the surge that saw Lynch and Voith each hit two three-pointers.
After taking a timeout, Gettysburg responded in the form of two foul shots from Caroline Murphy but Rachel Baskin quickly restored Haverford's double-figure lead with a four-point play on the subsequent possession. Baskin drilled a three-pointer from the corner and made the ensuing free throw to give the Fords their largest lead of the game at 51-38 with just over nine minutes left on the clock.
The Bullets did not go away quietly however, as they crept within four on a layup by Samantha Pagel with 57 seconds remaining. Haverford, the top free throw shooting team in the conference, then went on to clinch the victory with a 4-for-4 showing from the charity stripe in the final 26 seconds.
Voith, who also added five rebounds and four steals, has now scored 20 or more points three times this season and 19 times in her career. Lynch led the team in rebounds with seven and came up with four steals of her own as the Fords forced Gettysburg into 20 turnovers. Baskin finished with nine points, four rebounds and a team-high five assists.
Murphy paced the Bullets with 18 points while taking game-high honors in rebounds and assists with 10 and 8, respectively.
Haverford makes the short trip to Bryn Mawr College on Thursday night for a 7 p.m. game with the Owls before returning home on Saturday to take on Dickinson College at 1 p.m.