Rachel Forjan Alyssa Aichele Senior Day 022016
60
Winner Susquehanna SUS 17-7, 10-6 LC
59
Elizabethtown ETOWN 15-8, 10-6 LC
Winner
Susquehanna SUS
17-7, 10-6 LC
60
Final
59
Elizabethtown ETOWN
15-8, 10-6 LC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Susquehanna SUS 14 20 14 12 60
Elizabethtown ETOWN 7 13 24 15 59

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

Susquehanna spoils senior day to clinch final playoff spot

ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. — The seniors on the Elizabethtown College women's basketball team did not get the send off they would have wanted Saturday afternoon at Thompson Gymnasium in a do-or-die game with visiting Susquehanna. The winner of the game would clinch the final playoff spot in the Landmark Conference, and that went to the Crusaders, who hung on for a one-point, 60-59 victory.

Elizabethtown (15-8, 10-6 Landmark) was slow out of the gate and trailed 14-0 with 3:18 left in the first quarter. Angie Schedler scored 11 of the first 14 points for Susquehanna (17-7, 10-6 Landmark). Schedler outscored E-town herself by the end of the opening period, 11-7. Susquehanna led 14-7 going into the second.

Rachel Liszkiewicz gave the Jays a boost of energy upon her insertion into the game. Down nine, Liszkiewicz drove to the hoop, got fouled, and made the shot. Her foul shot was also good to complete the three-point play to cut it to six, 18-12. The sophomore assisted on Rachel Forjan's jumper to keep it at six, and then Liszkiewicz made a pair of free throws to get Elizabethtown within four.

Angie Schedler drained one of her four first-half threes to extend it back to seven, but on the other end, Liszkiewicz penetrated the right side of the Susquehanna defense, drew two defenders, and found an open Meredith Holley for an easy lay-in. Alyssa Aichele's jumper made it a quick 5-0 spurt to bring E-town within three, but Sofie Schedler hit another three for the Crusaders and the visitors went on an 11-0 run to close out the first half with a 34-20 lead.

The Blue Jays were held to under 23 percent shooting in the first half and kept Emily Martin off the scoresheet. Martin, however, came alive in the second half and helped get E-town back into the game.

Susquehanna hit the first bucket of the second half with 9:34 showing, but by the 6:31 mark of the third quarter, the Jays were within three. After Nikki Komara's jumper, Elizabethtown scored the next 13 points. Martin got into it offensively, connecting on a jumper, splitting a pair of free throws, and a made layup. Aichele hit a three and Marissa Gingrich converted a Crusader turnover into two points.

E-town got to within one point with a little over five minutes in the third, but Susquehanna was always able to keep the lead and hold the Jays off.

Aichele was able to strip Angie Schedler of the ball out top and took it down the court. She dished it off to her senior teammate Forjan, who made the fastbreak layup to again get EC within three. The teams traded threes, with the Crusaders getting two from the Schedlers and Forjan knocked one down for E-town, but Susquehanna was still up six. Martin made two free throws near the end of the third as the game went into the fourth, 48-44 Susquehanna.

With all the energy spent climbing back into the game after the rough start, Elizabethtown found itself down eight with half the final quarter to play. The will did not break, however, as Martin scored ten straight points for E-town to get the score to 58-56 Crusaders with 13 seconds left.

Komara was able to shake her defender on an inbounds play on Susquehanna's end and make her layup to push the lead to four with 11 seconds to play. Gingrich hit her only shot of the quarter, a three-pointer, with five seconds to go, but Elizabethtown was unable to get a foul in the waning seconds and the Crusaders ran out the clock to secure the final playoff spot.

In the second half alone, Martin scored all 19 of her points and grabbed 12 her of game-high 21 rebounds for her 15th double-double of the season. It was her first 20-plus rebound game of the year. Forjan added 17 for the Jays, while Aichele had nine points and six steals.
 
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Players Mentioned

Alyssa Aichele

#14 Alyssa Aichele

F/G
5' 8"
Senior
Rachel Forjan

#25 Rachel Forjan

G
5' 8"
Senior
Marissa Gingrich

#10 Marissa Gingrich

G
5' 8"
Sophomore
Meredith Holley

#30 Meredith Holley

F
5' 10"
Sophomore
Rachel Liszkiewicz

#34 Rachel Liszkiewicz

G
5' 5"
Sophomore
Emily Martin

#21 Emily Martin

C
6' 0"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Alyssa Aichele

#14 Alyssa Aichele

5' 8"
Senior
F/G
Rachel Forjan

#25 Rachel Forjan

5' 8"
Senior
G
Marissa Gingrich

#10 Marissa Gingrich

5' 8"
Sophomore
G
Meredith Holley

#30 Meredith Holley

5' 10"
Sophomore
F
Rachel Liszkiewicz

#34 Rachel Liszkiewicz

5' 5"
Sophomore
G
Emily Martin

#21 Emily Martin

6' 0"
Junior
C