WORCESTER, Mass. – Taking an undefeated record on the season into their third Northeast-10 Conference game, the New Haven women's basketball team fell victim at the buzzer, dropping a 54-52 decision on the road against the Assumption Greyhounds. With the decision, New Haven falls to 4-1 on the season and 2-1 in the Northeast-10 Conference.

Leading the Chargers was junior guard Lindsay Hogan (Bayville, N.Y./Locust Valley) who finished with 17 points, connecting on 8-of-14 from the field, including a three pointer. Hogan was one of three players in double figures for the game, joined by seniors Charlotte Bassett (Glastonbury, Conn./Glastonbury) and Sabira Ahayeva (Minsk, Belarus/Minsk #27) who each finished with a baker's dozen 13 points. Both Bassett and Ahayeva finished with three three-point field goals while Bassett added two addition field goals and Ahayeva finished with one more field goal and was 2-of-2 at the free throw line.

As a team, New Haven finished the game shooting 40.4 percent from the field, connecting on 21-of-52 field goal attempts, with a third of the field goals from outside the three point arc where the Blue and Gold were 7-of-10 overall. The Greyhounds also took the slim advantage in the battle of the boards with a 30-28 margin with both Ahayeva and Aniya McDonald-Perry (Middletown, Conn./Putnam Science Academy) leading the team with five rebounds apiece. McDonald-Perry also led the Chargers with five steals, part of 12 total for the team.

FIRST QUARTER NOTES

·        It took more than two minutes before either team would connect for the first points of the evening with the Greyhounds striking first. A little over a minute later, the Chargers net their first points with a three pointer from Bassett also providing the first lead change of the evening.

·        Assumption regained a lead and held on to it for the next two minutes before the Chargers rattled off eight straight points and held Assumption off the scoreboard for over two minutes, gaining a 12-7 lead with three minutes before the first intermission.

·        It would again be three pointers that provided the lead for the Charger with one each from Bassett and Ahayeva following the first bench of points of the night off the finger tips of Bianca Pendleton (Accokeek, Md./New Hope Academy). All combined those three buckets made up the 8-0 run.

·        Assumption answered that rally with one of their own as they closed out the opening period on a 7-0 run that resulted in a 14-12 lead at the buzzer.

SECOND QUARTER NOTES

·        The Greyhounds kept that late first quarter momentum into the second quarter, scoring the first five points to build its largest lead of the opening half at 19-12.

·        Hogan would end the New Haven drought, one that totaled just under five minutes, with her first points of the day on a floating jumper.

·        The game of runs would continue as that Hogan jumper sparked a 7-0 rally that resulted in a 19-19 tie just past the halfway point in the period. All three buckets in that stretch came from different players as Ahayeva added another three pointer and Pendleton a turnaround jumper thanks to an assist from Bassett.

·        In the final four-and-a-half minutes, the teams would swap leads three times before a put-back layup from Hogan knot the score at 26 where it would remain going into the locker room at the intermission.

·        At the break, Ahayeva was tied for the game-high with nine points, all of which came from outside the arc. Both Hogan and Basett followed with six and Pendleton added five to complete the Chargers first half scoring.  

THIRD QUARTER NOTES

·        Just like at the start of the game it was nearly two minutes before either team would score, this time around it was the Chargers who struck first as Ahayeva converted a pair at the line.

·        She would go on to score the first four points of the half and combined with a layup from McDonald-Perry the Chargers would open up a 32-28 lead just shy of four minutes into the action.

·         Just over two minutes later, Paige Cote (Sanford, Maine/Sanford) net her first points of the night on a second-chance jumper that provided the largest lead for either team in the third quarter, 34-29.

·        Through the remaining four minutes of the frame, the teams would trade leads four times before hogan broke a 39-39 draw with a layup with 17 seconds remaining. The Greyhounds would convert 1-of-2 free throws in the final seconds as New Haven took the slim 41-40 lead into the final intermission.

FOURTH QUARTER NOTES

·        The final 10 minutes of action wouldn't be much different as the teams traded leads three times and were locked in the scoring column three times before all was said and done.

·        The largest lead for either team came with 7:51 remaining and was in favor of the home team with the Greyhounds taking a 45-41 lead.

·        The Chargers responded by scoring back-to-back baskets just 22 seconds apart to knot the score at 45.

·        A three pointer from Bassett and a floater from Hogan would conclude a stretch where the Blue and Gold scored five of seven points to take a 50-47 lead with 4:28 remaining.

·        After ties at both 50 and 52, both teams would face turnovers in the final minute of action. After an offensive foul gave the ball back to New Haven with four seconds remaining, the Chargers turned to Hogan whose jump shot rimmed out with Assumption securing the rebound.

·        After calling a timeout with three seconds remaining to advance the ball, Assumption was the beneficiary of a buzzer beating layup with Marina Callahan the hero for the Greyhounds.

UP NEXT

New Haven will continue a stretch of three-straight conference games when they return to the hardwood on Wednesday, December 4 with a visit from the Southern New Hampshire Penmen. Tipoff in the NE10 battle is slated for 5:30 p.m. with all of the action from the Jeffery P. Hazell Athletics Center set to air live on NE10 Now on Flo College.