Annville, PA - The Messiah College women's basketball team upset No. 1 Lebanon Valley College 53-47 Saturday to claim their ninth Commonwealth Conference title in 13 appearances. After losing both regular season games to the Dutchmen, 66-64 at home and 65-51 in Annville, the Falcons made key changes to both their offense and defense in order to secure the post-season victory.

"When you lose to a good team twice, you can't expect to come into their place and get a different result by doing the same things," head coach Mike Miller said. "We used different defensive tactics this time around and it definitely paid off."

The Falcons held the advantage throughout most of the first half, but relinquished their lead for less than six minutes in the second. A strong defensive effort, key offensive plays, and consistent free throw shooting - the Falcons were 20-25 (80%) - pushed Messiah ahead in the final nine minutes of play. The Falcons really took it to the Dutchmen in the final minutes of play, driving the lane and drawing critical fouls. Key three-point plays from Katelyn Vanderhoff and Chelsea Danel also contributed to Messiah's second half momentum.

"We didn't have just one or two standouts today," Miller said. "Each player came through for us with key plays at key times. LVC is a very good team and we knew that it was going to take a full team effort to win this one."

In the opening stanza, the Falcons took the early lead, pulling ahead by as many as five points at both 12:51 and 11:10. The Dutchmen were ever so close though, working hard to tie things at 12-12 and went ahead 15-14 on a triple by Taylor Umbrell. Five straight points by the Falcons helped reclaim the lead at 19-15, but LVC added three more points before the break to hold close at 19-18.

In the second half, the Falcons fell behind quickly after going 0-11 from the field through the first 12 minutes. Fortunately, they posted seven points, all from free throws, to stay within two points of the Dutchmen.

Following a Messiah timeout at the 8:29 mark, the Falcons made a complete turnaround. In the next three minutes, they scored on five straight possessions, outscoring the Dutchmen 12-4, and reclaiming the lead 39-33. Katelyn Vanderhoff initiated the comeback when she tied the game 29-29 with a strong spin move in the paint. She followed it up with a defensive rebound at the other end of the court, giving the ball back to the Falcons. When they got the ball across midcourt, the Falcons found Vanderhoff once again, who ended up driving the lane for another bucket and a LVC foul. After completing the three-point play, the Falcons had regained the lead 32-39.

The Dutchmen responded with two points from Taylor Umbrell, but it was a huge triple from Taylor Miller that brought the Messiah fans to their feet. Momentum was growing.

In their next possession, the Falcons continued to look inside offensively. Chelsea Danel attempted to drive to the basket but was stopped by two Dutchmen at the block. Instead of trying to force her way through, she kicked the ball up to the elbow to find Glackin who hit the jumper with ease. At the other end of the court LVC attempted to work inside, but Glackin was there to take the ball away from senior Caitlin Bach, who picked up her fourth foul and headed to the bench. With the ball in-hand, the Falcons found Vanderhoff in the paint yet again for the spin around bucket.

In just three short minutes, Messiah outscored the Dutchmen 12-4 to take a six point lead (39-33) with just 5:29 to play.

Following an LVC timeout, Lexie Lantz brought the Dutchmen within four after making two free throws, but it was Glackin who got the upper-hand. In the next possession, Glackin went to work in the paint and was fouled by Lantz – her fourth. Glackin made one of two free throws, but more importantly forced Lantz to take a seat so the Dutchmen could re-enter Bach.

After a layup by Taylor Umbrell brought LVC within three (40-37), the Dutchmen began to apply full-court pressure. As soon as the ball was in-bounded by the Falcons, LVC gets called for a foul, sending Miller to the line. She makes both free throws, but her efforts were neutralized in the next play when a loose ball foul by Danel puts Bach on the charity stripe for two good free throws.

The Dutchmen's full-court pressure got the best of the Falcons in their next possession, as Kiely Chaklos stole the ball at midcourt and was off to the races. Fortunately for the Falcons, she was unable to convert the layup. Bach and Glackin battled for the rebound, which eventually went to Glackin. The Falcons pushed the ball up court and got it to Vanderhoff who drove the lane and was fouled by Bach – her fifth. Vanderhoff made both free throws to extend Messiah's lead 44-39.

With just 2:05 to play and Bach no longer in the game, the Falcons were in the driver's seat.

After a layup by Chaklos, Danel found her way to the basket, picking up an LVC foul on the way. She completed the three-point play and added two more free throws just moments later to keep the Falcons ahead 49-43.

In the final minute of play, the Dutchmen never stopped battling. After a missed attempt by Chaklos, LVC was forced to foul quickly in order to regain possession. Sienna Wisse made one of two free throws, extending Messiah's lead 50-43. Chaklos made up for her previous miss, getting a bucket in the Dutchmen's next possession, but her efforts weren't enough. With 18 seconds to play and a 50-45 Falcon advantage, LVC fouled Miller who made the first but missed the second. Glackin crashed the boards and came up with the offensive rebound and the put back.

Chaklos added two more points before the final buzzer sounded, but the Falcons had done it. They defeated the reigning Commonwealth Conference champions on the Dutchmen's home court to the tune of 53-47.

Vanderhoff led the Falcons with 15 points, while Danel contributed 12 and Taylor Miller scored 10. Gillian Glackin, the Commonwealth Rookie of the Year, had another impressive double-double (12 points, 10 rebounds). Danel received the Commonwealth Tournament Most Valuable Player award. As a team, the Falcons shot 33.3% (15-45) from the field, were 3-13 (23.1%) from three and shot 80% (20-25) for free throws.

The Dutchmen outrebounded the Falcons 47-29 and and shot 25.9% (14-54) from the field, were 2-8 (25%) from three, and shot 85% (17-20) from the charity stripe. Kiely Chaklos led LVC with 12 points. Lexie Lantz added 11 points, while Taylor Umbrell contributed nine and brought down 14 rebounds.

"We won this [game] way before the tipoff," Miller said. "We overcame so much throughout the season and that helped us get to a place where we could play without pressure. We could play free and really enjoy it."

With the win, the Falcons punch their ticket to the NCAA tournament. This will be their 16th trip to the dance, with their most successful performances coming in 2000-2001 and 2007-2008. In both seasons, the Falcons made it to the National Championship, but were upended by the University of Washington-St. Louis 67-45 and Howard Payne University 68-54, respectively.

The Falcons will find out their first round fate on Monday's NCAA selection show. The 2:30 p.m. webcast can be watched on NCAA.com.