Box Score

COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – Ursinus College came out firing from distance in its Centennial Conference women's basketball game against visiting Gettysburg College, canning nine three-pointers in the contest, but the Bullets pulled through thanks to a dominating effort in the paint, erasing a late five-point second-half deficit en route to a 69-66 victory in Helfferich Hall Saturday afternoon. Gettysburg improved to 4-2 overall and 2-1 in the CC with the victory.

Ursinus (2-3, 1-2 CC) canned 50 percent of its three-point attempts in the contest and shot over 45 percent from the field overall, but Gettysburg out-rebounded the Bears 39-27, including 18 on the offensive glass leading to 19 second-chance points. Sophomore Caitlin Moser (Wyomissing, Pa./Wyomissing) led the comeback with 15 of her team-high 17 points coming in the second half, including the go-ahead score with just over a minute left. Moser finished 8-of-12 shooting from the floor and added a team-high nine rebounds. Both starting Gettysburg guards helped key the effort with junior Allie Drechsler (Westminster, Md./Winters Mill) and sophomore Mary Spicer (Floral Park, N.Y./Sacred Heart Academy) each pouring in 16 points. The duo was perfect (6-of-6) from the charity stripe inside the final minute.

After Gettysburg opened with the first bucket, Ursinus scored each of the next seven points, building their lead to seven (15-8) just past the midway point of the first half. Fueled by five three-pointers, including three by Jaclyn Hilf, the Bears retained the lead for the remainder of the stanza. The Bullets closed the seven-point gap to one (26-25) on a jumper by Spicer at 2:28 before the two squads sidled into the break with Ursinus leading 30-27.

In the opening seven minutes of the second half, the lead exchanged hands 10 times with the Bears finally jumping ahead 45-44 on a yet another Hilf three-pointer at 12:53. The hosts kept the advantage for five minutes when a 5-0 run by the Bullets put them up by one (55-54) with under eight minutes to play.

Ursinus came right back with six points to build a 60-55 lead with just over six minutes to play and maintained the margin as the visitors missed five consecutive shots. The Bears couldn't capitalize on the drought, making two turnovers and missing one shot, while the Bullets' persistence finally paid off as Spicer converted an old-fashioned three-point play at 3:24 to put the score at 60-58.

Following a pair of free throws by Carolyn Konstanzer, Moser took over with five consecutive points, the last following an offensive rebound and giving Gettysburg the lead for good 63-62 at 1:05. Drechsler and Spicer each put in two free throws on the Bullets' next two possessions, but Ursinus stayed within a point with a pair of free throws and a field goal with under 25 seconds to play. Drechsler, who has nailed 80 percent of her free throw attempts this season, calmly went to the line for another pair of attempts and converted both, setting the margin at three with nine ticks left. The Bears tossed up another attempt from distance for the tie, but the shot was off the mark as time expired.

Spicer finished 4-of-9 from the field and 8-of-11 on free throws, while Drechsler finished 5-of-14 and 6-of-6 from the charity stripe. Spicer also grabbed seven rebounds and dished out a team-high four assists. Junior Courtney Fields (Baltimore, Md./St. Paul's School for Girls) accounted for all three Gettysburg threes and ended the contest with 11 points, six boards, and three assists.

Hilf led Ursinus with 21 points, most of which came from five three-pointers. She also grabbed six rebounds. Konstanzer tossed in 17 points, while Laura Krieger and Julie Brown posted 11 and 10 points, respectively.

Gettysburg will take a break from conference action to take battle several non-league foes over the holiday season, beginning with Hardin-Simmons University on Friday, Dec. 19, at 12 p.m. as part of the Bahamas Sunshine Shootout. The Bullets return to the friendly confines of Bream Gymnasium for the Days Inn Tournament on Jan. 2-3.