William Smith (14-4, 7-2) trailed most of the night, but stayed within striking distance of the Saints (10-6, 6-1). After trailing by as many as 10 early in the second half, the Herons used a 10-2 run to claim a 43-42 lead on a pair of free throws by O'Brien with 7:48 remaining. Unfortunately, William Smith made just 1-of-16 field goal attempts in the game's final seven and a half minutes.

Olivia Mathieu put St. Lawrence back in front on the ensuing possession. The Saints extended their lead to nine before junior Ali Pliszka converted a layup to snap the more-than-six-minute-long Heron scoring drought.

O'Brien was 7-of-16 from the floor, 3-of-6 from beyond the 3-point arc, and made 3-of-4 at the line. She also registered a team-high three steals. First-year guard Melanie Patterson added eight points. Junior forward Molly Breen grabbed a team--high nine rebounds. As a team, William Smith shot just 28 percent for the game.

Kelly Legg paced St. Lawrence with a 17-point, 11-rebound double-double. She also blocked four shots. Cassie St. Hilaire and Caroline Dalton each contributed eight points and Kara McDuffee chipped in seven points and 10 boards. SLU shot 42 percent for the game.

The Herons will try to halt their two-game slide at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 1, when they continue their North Country road trip at Clarkson (7-8, 2-5).