WASHINGTON, D.C. – The University of Scranton women's basketball team had a chance to tie or take the lead in the closing seconds, but could not connect and ultimately suffered a 46-42 loss at Catholic on Saturday afternoon in the DuFour Center.

The loss drops seventh-ranked Scranton to 15-2 overall and 7-1 in Landmark Conference play. The Lady Royals hold a half-game lead over the Cardinals (12-4, 6-1 Landmark) and Susquehanna (12-3, 6-1).

Catholic held a 40-31 lead with a little less than eight minutes to play, but Scranton responded with the next seven points to pull within two. They still trailed by two with 22 seconds left with possession coming out of a timeout. But a jumper just inside the 10-second mark was no good, and Catholic made a pair of free throws with eight seconds left to seal the victory.

Sophomore forward Sarah Payonk (Schwenksville, Pa./Spring-Ford) led the Lady Royals with 14 points and 14 rebounds, her fourth double-double of the season. Fellow sophomore forward Alexix Roman (Hawley, Pa./Wallenpaupack) had 12 points and nine rebounds, junior guard Noelle Alicea (Downingtown, Pa./Downingtown East) had seven points and six steals, and senior forward Meredith Mesaris (Fairfax, Va./Fairfax) had six points.

As was the case with Scranton's loss to Cabrini earlier this season, neither team shot the ball well on Saturday. Scranton was just 14-for-63 (22.2 percent) while Catholic made 16 of 55 (29.1 percent) from the field. Scranton was 2-for-22 (9.1 percent) from 3-point range while the Cardinals were 4-for-15 (26.7 percent).

The Lady Royals dominated the rebounding battle, 53-43, including six each from senior guards Lia DiSciascio (Broomall, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara) and Lindsay Fluehr (Bensalem, Pa./Nazareth Academy).

Catholic was led by sophomore guard Michelle DeSantis (Trumbull, Conn./Lauralton Hall), who had 14 points, eight rebounds, five assists and three steals. The Cardinals overcame 20 turnovers by forcing Scranton into 19 of its own.

The Lady Royals return to action on Wednesday, Jan. 21, when they travel to Bethlehem, Pa. to take on Moravian at 7 p.m.

--ROYALS--