George Washington University Athletics
George Washington University
3-1
Villanova
1-2
Women's Hoops Downs Villanova for Third Straight Win
11/20/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
VILLANOVA, Pa. -- Senior Caira Washington posted her 30th career double-double with team highs of 15 points and 11 rebounds as the George Washington women's basketball team emerged from a slugfest with a 72-69 road victory over Villanova on Sunday afternoon at The Pavilion.
Washington paced four Colonials in double digits as GW (3-1) won its third game in a row overall as well as its third straight victory over Villanova (1-2). Senior Hannah Schaible also added 15 points and six rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal.
Junior Camila Tapias connected on a trio of three-pointers on the way to 10 points while junior Brianna Cummings added 11 points, eight rebounds and two assists.
The Colonials opened the game on a 7-2 run and extended the lead to 11-4 but Villanova battled back and trailed by one, 15-14, after 10 minutes of play.
The second quarter was closely contested with five lead changes through the period. Villanova was up by four in the final minute of the half but a jumper by Cummings cut the deficit to two. Washington stole the ball on the ensuing possession and got a put-back, buzzer-beating layup at the horn to tie the score at 32-32.
The Colonials outscored Villanova 25-18 in the third quarter, aided by four three-pointers, to carry a seven-point lead into the final period. Tapias hit all three of her triples in the third while junior Kelli Prange connected from beyond the arc in the final seconds to give GW a 57-50 lead entering the fourth.
Prange hit another three to open an eight-point lead at 64-56 with just over seven minutes to play, but Villanova battled back to within two points at 68-66 with 1:09 remaining.
GW's shooting at the foul line kept them in front, but the Wildcats trimmed the lead to two, 71-69, with five seconds left.
Schaible received the ball on the ensuing inbound and was immediately fouled. She hit one of two foul shots to make the score 72-69 and then graduate student Lexi Martins stole the ball with one second remaining, allowing GW to regain possession on a jump ball to run out the clock.
Martins was her usual, reliable self with six points and nine rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench. In total, nine players registered a field goal for the Colonials in the win.
GW will next travel south for the Gulf Coast Showcase, a three-day tournament that runs Friday-Sunday following Thanksgiving in Estero, Florida.
The Colonials will open the tournament against 2016 National Champion runner up #14/14 Syracuse on Friday at 7:30 p.m. Possible opponents beyond Friday are Ohio State, Florida Gulf Coast, Baylor, DePaul, Western Kentucky and Kent State.
