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March 7, 2004

Contact: ?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = 'urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags' />Amanda Brickell?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = 'urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office' />

UPPER MARLBORO, MD. – The ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ women’s basketball team picked up its school record 20^th win with a 61-57 victory over Bucknell in the Patriot League tournament semifinals on Sunday.  The Raiders advance to the Patriot League Championship for the first time since the 1995-96 season and will host the final game Wednesday, March 10 at 7 p.m.

The Bison took an early 5-2 lead and kept ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ from notching a field goal until nearly five minutes in.  Lindsey Hollobaugh, Patriot League Freshman of the Year, scored eight of the team’s first ten points to give the Bison a 10-8 edge at the 14 minute mark.

Senior tri-captain Malissa Burke (Traverse City, Mich.) stepped up and scored four straight baskets to put ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ up 17-14 with ten minutes on the clock.  The remainder of the half was a scuffle of four ties and two lead changes from which Bucknell emerged with a 29-26 lead.

¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ was 11-of-41 from the field shooting 26.8 percent in the first, while Bucknell shot 38.7 percent on 12-of-31 from the floor.  The Raiders committed just four turnovers while forcing 11.  Bucknell held the slight edge in rebounding with 25 boards to ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ’s 24.

The Raiders took a 37-36 lead in the second on a layup from Emily Braseth (E. Grand Rapids, Mich.) in the midst of a 10-2 run that put ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ up 41-37 with 15 minutes to play.  Bucknell responded with nine unanswered points to take a 49-45 lead with just over nine minutes remaining.

Burke knotted the score at 57 with a foul shot and then put the Raiders up two with a lay-in at 3:45.  With the score stuck at 59-57 and 18 seconds left on the clock, Bucknell had possession of the ball and a chance to tie it up, but the Raiders held on tight and Megan Ballard (Atlanta, Ga.) knocked down two from the free throw line to seal the 61-57 win.

Junior Milaina Lagzdins (Burlington, Ont.) recorded her sixth double-double of the season and made her way into the ninth spot on ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ’s career rebounding list with 18 boards and 15 points in the contest and 588 boards over the last three years. 

Burke knocked down three threes to sew up the second spot on ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ’s season three-point list with 48. She surpassed 1,400 career points tallying 21 in the contest and 1,412 over four seasons.

Braseth notched eight points and seven rebounds to move into fifth on ¸Ô±¾ÊÓƵ’s single season scoring list with 492 points.  Leandra Fuller (Harrisburg, Pa.) turned away one shot to improve her season total to 47 and move into second on the school’s season blocks list, while contributing eight points and six rebounds.

Chigozie Ozor (Ann Arbor, Mich.) added four points, five rebounds, and a team-high five assists to the effort.  Sophomore Megan Ballard (Atlanta, Ga.) provided a defensive spark off the bench swiping a steal and grabbing three rebounds while holding Hollobaugh to just three points in the second half.  Fellow sophomore Meghan Curtin (Bronx, N.Y.) drained a three-pointer off the bench in the first to add to the Raider effort.

Hollobaugh led Bucknell with 20 points, while Desire Almind controlled the boards with 20 rebounds to go with ten points.  

The Raiders improved to 20-9 with the win while Bucknell dropped to 15-14.  The Raiders will look to earn the program’s first-ever Patriot League Championship and NCAA Tournament bid at home on Wednesday.  Tickets are $7 for adults and $3 for students.