MEADVILLE, Pa. - December 2, 2021 – Hiram women's basketball fell to the Allegheny College Gators, 62-54, on Thursday in their North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) opener at the Wise Center.
 
Maddie Rakestraw got the Terriers on the scoreboard first, sinking a jumper with 9:28 to play in the first, giving Hiram a 2-0 lead. The Terriers would hold the Gators scoreless for the first six minutes of play, opening the first quarter on an 8-0 run, before Syndey Cook got Allegheny on the scoreboard with her layup with 3:47 remaining.
 
Four-straight from the Terriers brought Hiram's lead out to 10, 12-2, with 1:20 left in the quarter, but the Gators closed the gap to just four, 12-8, headed into the second period.
 
Madison Branch opened the scoring in the second with a jumper, extending Hiram's lead to 14-6, before a 9-0 gave the Gators their first lead of the game, 15-14.
 
Hiram tied the score at 15-all on a free throw by Selena Vargas, before the two sides traded buckets down the stretch, heading into the locker room all even at 20-20.
 
Vargas knocked down another free throw to open the third, giving Hiram a 21-20 lead, but with an 8-0 run, the Gators took a lead they'd never relinquish.
 
Allegheny led by as many as 10 as they outscored the Terriers, 17-9, in the third quarter, and took a 37-29 lead into the fourth.
 
Both teams picked up the scoring in the fourth quarter, combining for 50 points, with the Gators extending their lead to 43-29 with a 6-0 run to start the fourth.
 
The Terriers twice pulled within four, on a fastbreak layup by Vargas with 3:36 to play, and on Alex Lichner's layup with 1:56 to play, before pulling within three on a pair of free throws by Branch with just over a minute remaining.
 
Allegheny answered with Alexis Caldwell's layup to go back up five, before Branch knocked down another two free throws, pulling Hiram back within three, 56-53.
 
However, a pair of Gator offensive rebounds whittled away the clock, and Allegheny made their free throws over the final few seconds to pull out a 62-54 victory.
 
Hiram falls to 3-5 (0-1 NCAC) with the loss, while the Gators move to 4-5 (1-0 NCAC) with the win.
 
Branch led the Terriers with 16 points, while Haley Thompson added 12 points and eight boards. Vargas led the Terriers on the glass with 16 rebounds, while Rakestraw and Taylor Valaitis each notched a team-high three assists.
 
The game features five ties and five lead changes, with both teams shooting 36.4 percent.
 
Hiram next hosts the Oberlin College Yeowomen in another NCAC conference matchup on Saturday, Dec. 4 at 1 p.m. inside Price Gymnasium.