George Washington University Athletics
George Washington University
21-5 (11-2)
St. Bonaventure
21-5 (10-3)
GW Women's Hoops Drops OT Heartbreaker at St. Bona
2/17/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
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Feb. 17, 2016
ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. -- Four Colonials scored in double figures, but the George Washington women's basketball team dropped a heartbreaker to Atlantic 10 rival St. Bonaventure, 69-67, in overtime on Wednesday evening at the Reilly Center.
Playing without preseason All-American and reigning A-10 Player and Defensive Player of the Year Jonquel Jones, GW falls to 21-5 overall and 11-2 in conference play but still clinches a top-4 seed and a bye through to the quarterfinals in the upcoming A-10 Championship thanks to Fordham's loss to Richmond.
Junior Hannah Schaible led the Colonials with 16 points and was a perfect 3-for-3 from deep, and she added eight rebounds to become the 25th member of GW's 500-rebound club. Grad student Lauren Chase tallied 14 points, seven rebounds and six assists, and sophomore Kelli Prange posted her second double-double of the season with 12 points and 10 boards. Junior Caira Washington was the fourth Colonial in double figures with 12 points to go with six rebounds.
GW dominated the boards, outrebounding St. Bonaventure, 49-31, including 19-6 on the offensive glass, to win the rebounding battle for the 25th time in 26 games this season.
St. Bonaventure (21-5, 10-3 A-10) held an 8-6 lead midway through the first quarter, but GW ended the period with a 12-4 run to go up, 18-12. The Colonials stayed hot in the second frame, outscoring the Bonnies, 19-10, for a 37-22 halftime advantage. Schaible scored eight points in the quarter and had 12 in the half.
GW shot 50 percent (15-30) from the field in the half, including 6-of-8 from 3-point range, while holding St. Bonaventure to 28.6 percent (8-28) from the floor.
The Bonnies opened the third quarter with an 8-2 run to cut it to seven, but five quick points by Prange reopened a double-digit advantage. St. Bonaventure, however, closed the period with another 8-2 spurt to make it 51-44 after three. The Bonnies continued to chip away in the fourth, eventually taking a 57-55 lead on a three-point play by Mariah Ruff with 2:05 remaining. Sophomore Brianna Cummings tied the game with a layup at 1:12, but Katie Healy put St. Bona back on top with 22 seconds to go before Washington forced overtime with a layup with 14 seconds left, knotting the score at 59-59.
After Nyla Rueter opened the extra session with a layup for St. Bonaventure, a layup by Cummings and a three-pointer by Schaible put the Colonials on top, 64-61, with 3:04 remaining. Mariah Ruff answered with a trey of her own 13 seconds later, tying the score for the eighth time, and Rueter gave the Bonnies the lead for good with another triple at the 1:58 mark.
Healy led St. Bonaventure with 24 points while Ruff poured in 18.
The Colonials return to action on Saturday when they host A-10 rival VCU at 3 p.m. at the Charles E. Smith Center.
