RIVERDALE, N.Y. – The Yeshiva University women's basketball team could not hang on to its lead as the Maccabees fell to the Gryphons of Sarah Lawrence College, by a score of 75-70, at the Peter Jay Sharp Center on Thursday evening. The Gryphons advance to 7-13 overall and 5-12 in Skyline play, while the Maccabees drop to 6-12 for the season and 4-12 against league competition.

Yeshiva led by as many as eight in the third quarter, but a 29-9 run by Sarah Lawrence during the final 8:37 of the stanza changed the course of the game.

The key factor was Sarah Lawrence successfully converting 29 free throws during the game as opposed to 12 points scored from the charity stripe by Yeshiva.

Leading the way for the Maccabees was sophomore Daniella Bessler, who scored 23 points, on 9-for-18 shooting, while grabbing six rebounds and dishing out just as many assists. Junior Yuval Nitzan had 22 points to go along with five assists and four boards. Classmate Daniella Rothman netted eight points and snatched just as many rebounds, while sophomore Shai Rahamim generated eight points, four assists, three steals, and three caroms.

Yeshiva never trailed at any point during the opening half. With 1:48 to go until the intermission, junior Gabrielle Kupferman buried a jump shot to equal Yeshiva's largest lead of the game, at 24-16. Sarah Lawrence finished the first half strong by going on a 6-2 run to pull to within four, at 26-22, after 20 minutes of play.

Yeshiva built its lead in the early stages of the third quarter as a jumper by Nitzan put the Maccabees back up by eight, 31-23, just over a minute into the second half. However, a 3-point field goal by rookie Kumi Tamura sparked the Gryphons' game-altering 29-9 run. Tamura drained another triple that tied the game at 31 points apiece. After each team scored three more points, Nitzan and sophomore Kira Elbaum combined for back-to-back layups to put the Maccabees back in front, 38-34, with 6:10 left in the third. Sarah Lawrence countered with nine unanswered points to take the lead for good at 43-38, with 3:37 to go in the period. The Maccabees kept falling further behind as the Gryphons built their advantage to 52-42 in the closing seconds of the quarter and that would be the score heading into the final period of regulation time.

Yeshiva came storming out of the gate in the fourth quarter, as a 3-point shot courtesy of Rahamim highlighted seven unanswered points to pull YU to within three, at 52-49. After Sarah Lawrence went back up by five, Nitzan got the Macs closer by executing a layup and drawing a foul at the same time. She knocked down the free throw to complete the traditional three-point play and narrow YU's deficit to 54-52 with 7:17 remaining in regulation time. Once again, Sarah Lawrence would respond as the Gryphons went on a 10-3 run to take a 64-55 hold with 4:10 left.

Sarah Lawrence built its lead up to 10 down the stretch, but the Blue and White had one more run in them. A jump shot by junior Renee Benjamini capped off six straight points for the Maccabees to shrink their deficit to 68-64 with 1:58 left to play. Thanks to some key free throws during the final minute of play, Sarah Lawrence inflated its advantage to 71-65 with 13 ticks left. Nitzan gave the Maccabees a fighting chance by burying a triple to make it a one possession game with nine seconds left. However, sophomore Kendall Haymore knocked down both free throws, after being fouled intentionally, to put YU back down by five. With two seconds left, Nitzan hit two free throws to make it a one possession game once again, at 73-70. However, junior Jordyn Medina iced the game with two daggers from the charity stripe to extend the Gryphons' lead to 75-70 and that would be the final score.

For Yeshiva, Elbaum had five points and seven rebounds. Benjamini grabbed five boards and added two points. Graduate student Miriam Kazlow snatched six rebounds, while Kupferman had two points and three caroms.

For Sarah Lawrence, Haymore produced a double-double with 24 points and 16 rebounds, while forcing three steals, dishing out a pair of assists, and blocking a shot. Tamura tallied 18 points and four assists. Freshman Kimiko Katzaroff just missed a double-double with 13 points and nine rebounds.

Yeshiva will take on SUNY Old Westbury, at the Nold Hall Athletic Complex, on Sunday morning. Tipoff is scheduled for 11:00 a.m.