Jan. 24, 2009

Rivalries, coaching milestones and positions in the Patriot League standings were all on the line Saturday. Lehigh and Navy recorded victories over their archrivals, defeating Lafayette and Army, respectively. Also on Saturday, Bucknell head coach Kathy Fedorjaka and Navy head coach Stefanie Pemper notched their 250th career victories. Of Fedorjaka's 250 wins, 183 have come with Bucknell. Pemper, who is in her first year in Annapolis, has won 10 games in her first season with the Mids. Also picking up a victory on Saturday was American, which won its fourth straight game to move into a tie for first place with Lehigh.

Navy (10-10, 3-2) collected a 44-39 win over archrival Army (11-8, 2-3) in front of 2,862 fans, giving the Mids their first win over the Black Knights since Jan. 21, 2007. With the win, Navy matched its Patriot League win total from last season. The Mids have now won three straight games, while Army has lost two straight and three of its last four. Navy's win also gave first-year head coach Stefanie Pemper her first victory against Army, while trimming the Black Knights' lead in the all-time series to 26-25. Both teams were held below 30-percent shooting from the floor in a game that included four ties and 11 lead-changes. Navy held Army without a field goal over the final six minutes of the game and converted 5-of-8 attempts from the foul line down the stretch to help seal the victory. Consedine tallied 15 points and 12 rebounds to lead Navy in both categories and notch her League-best seventh double-double of the season. Kalen Kropa added six points, seven rebounds and five assists, with KC Gordon contributing seven points and five boards. Megan Evans led the Black Knights with 10 points. Also for Army, Alex McGuire provided nine points, while Erin Anthony added eight points and four blocked shots. Navy is now in a tie for third place in the Patriot League, while Army slips into a tie for fifth.

In front of a single-game regular season-record crowd of 1,784 fans, Lehigh (15-5, 4-1) recorded a 73-51 home win against Lafayette (8-12, 2-3) in the most-played rivalry in Patriot League women's basketball. After Lafayette cut Lehigh's lead to 32-30 with eight seconds left in the first half, Lehigh scored the next 13 points, including the first 11 of the second half, to seize control of the game. The Mountain Hawks built leads as large as 22 points and led by no less than 17 points in the final 10 minutes. Lehigh sophomore guard Erica Prosser recorded her fourth straight game with at least 20 points, finishing the contest with a game-high 24 points and five assists. Prosser, who averages a League-best 22.2 points in Patriot League play, is the only Mountain Hawk averaging double-figures in League competition. Also in double-figures for the Mountain Hawks on Saturday was sophomore forward Courtney Dentler, who provided 10 points. Sophomore forward LaKeisha Wright score 14 points to lead Lafayette, while senior guard Jessica Spicer closed with 10 points. Spicer also collected eight rebounds, helping the Leopards out-rebound the Mountain Hawks, 38-31.

American (14-6, 4-1) put itself into a tie for first place in the Patriot League with a 64-58 home win against Holy Cross (8-12, 3-2). Since losing their League opener, the Eagles have rattled off four straight wins. Holy Cross has dropped two straight after winning its first three Patriot League contests. American used a 31-11 edge in free throw attempts to its advantage, scoring 11 more points than the Crusaders at the charity stripe. The teams exchanged leads nine times and were tied 10 times. American gained its largest lead when freshman Ebony Edwards' three-pointer capped a 7-0 run to give the Eagles a 53-46 advantage with 6:44 remaining. American held Holy Cross scoreless for 4:45 during its run. The Crusaders were unable to trim the deficit to less than four points for the remainder of the game. American has now won three straight meetings between the teams. Michelle Kirk and Nicole Ryan combined to score 35 points for the Eagles, including a game-high 18 by Kirk. Briana McFadden and Whitney Fremeau scored 12 points apiece to pace Holy Cross.

Bucknell (10-8, 2-3) snapped a three-game losing streak while handing Colgate (4-16, 0-5) its fifth straight defeat. The Bison notched an 86-54 victory in Hamilton, N.Y. to give the Raiders their third straight loss in the series. Bucknell has now defeated Colgate four straight times on the Raiders' home floor. Bucknell's 86 points were a season-high for the Bison. Bucknell opened the game on a 15-2 run and never trailed as the Bison racked up a season-best 86 points. Bucknell shot 56 percent from the field, including 69 percent in the first half. Eight different players scored for the Bison, including four in double-figures. Lauren Schober, Cosima Higham and Morgan Wrightson all scored a game-high 16 points, while Taylor Phillips chipped in 10 points. Higham also pulled down a game-high 14 rebounds, including six offensive boards. Freshman Patricia Oakes paced the Raiders with 10 points and seven rebounds.