BALTIMORE, Md. - November 12, 2021 – Though they pulled within two late, Hiram women's basketball fell to the Goucher College Gophers, 63-56, on Friday in their first game of the Renie Amoss Memorial Tip-Off Classic at the Decker Sports & Recreation Center.
After Alayna McFadden got the Gophers on the scoreboard first, Goucher took an early six-point, first-quarter lead, outscoring the Terriers 10-4 over the first five minutes of play.
Selena Vargas ended a minute scoreless stretch by both sides with a jumper, pulling Hiram within two, but a pair of McFadden free throws brought the lead back out to six.
With just over a minute remaining in the quarter,
Madison Branch pulled the Terriers within one, 12-11, by a three-pointer by Claire Flynn gave Goucher a four-point, 15-11, lead after one.
The Gophers quickly brought out their lead to eight with a pair of second-quarter buckets before Hiram made their run. Down 19-11, Hiram scored 10 of the next 12 points to even the score at 21-all on a pair of free throws by
Taylor Valaitis and took a 23-21 lead on
Haley Thompson's layup with 3:03 left in the half.
Back-to-back buckets by Branch made it 27-21 and capped off the 16-2 run before three-straight from McFadden gave Hiram a 27-24 lead at the halftime break.
The Terriers continued their roll to start the third, scoring eight-straight to bring their lead out to its largest of the game, 35-24, with 7:31 to play in the third. But over the next three minutes, Goucher pulled back within four and took a 36-35 on McFadden's layup with 1:54 left in the quarter, capping off a 12-0 run.
Two free throws by
Maddie Rakestraw gave Hiram the lead back, and the two sides traded buckets down the stretch in the third, with the Terriers taking a 41-39 lead into the fourth.
However, the Terriers' fourth-quarter lead was short-lived, as with a 15-3 run, the Gophers took a 10-point, 54-44 lead with under five minutes remaining.
Hiram clawed their way back, a three-pointer by Alex Licher made it 54-47, and a jumper by Vargas pulled the Terriers within five.
Goucher brought the lead back out to nine, 58-49, with 2:11 to play, but a 7-0 run, capped off by a pair of Valaitis' free throws made it a one-possession game with 23 seconds to play.
With 12 seconds to play, Anise Williams made her first and missed her second free throw, but the Terriers couldn't corral the rebound and the Gophers made their free throws down the stretch to seal the 63-56 victory.
Hiram drops to 1-2 with the loss, while the Gophers move to 1-2 with the win.
Thompson led the Terriers with 14 points and seven rebounds, while Branch and Vargas also scored in double-figures with 11 and 10 points apiece.
The game featured four ties and six lead changes, with both teams shooting about 36 percent from the field.
Hiram will wrap up the Renie Amoss Memorial Tip-Off Classic on Saturday, Nov. 13 when they take on the Gettysburg College Bullets at 2 p.m.
