PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - George Mason closed the game on a 9-3
run, but the late rally fell short as women's basketball dropped a 57-46
decision at Drexel in Colonial Athletic Association play Thursday night. Both
Janaa Pickard and Amber Easter posted double-figure scoring numbers for the
Patriots.
Pickard, playing in front of her hometown crowd, led Mason (8-17, 3-11 CAA)
with 12 points followed by Easter's 11 points and team-high nine rebounds. After
scoring 18 points in the first half, Hollie Mershon was held to just eight in
the final 20 minutes to finish the game with 26 points for Drexel (18-7, 11-3 CAA). Mershon was
the only Dragon to reach double-figures as Taylor Wootton was next contributing
eight points.
Mason won the rebounding battle, 32-28, but Drexel shot 43.1
percent from the field. Mason shot 37.3 percent. Combined, both teams took just
14 trips to the charity stripe with the Dragons going a perfect 6-for-6 as
Mason went 5-of-8.
After opening with four ties and a lead change, Drexel
grabbed the lead it would hold the remainder of the game on a Mershon bucket at
12:09 for a 10-8 score in the first half. Saunders made it a three-point game,
13-10, hitting a jumper at the 11:13 mark before the Dragons extended its lead
to seven using a 4-0 run.
Coming out of the third media timeout at 6:57, Cierra
Strickland hit both attempts at the charity stripe before Mershon and Pickard
traded three-pointers for a 25-17 Drexel lead with five minutes remaining. The
Dragons closed the first half on an 8-2 spurt for a 33-19 halftime advantage.
Mershon led all scorers with 18 first half points as Drexel shot 46.4 percent
from the field.
After Drexel opened the second half with a three-pointer,
Mason answered with four unanswered points to cut the score to 36-23 with 17:30
on the clock. With Drexel leading 43-25, the Patriots kept the Dragons to one
field goal over the next four minutes while using an 8-2 run capped with a
triple from Easter to make it a 45-33 ballgame with 9:07 remaining in the game.
Sparked by a three-pointer from Flanagan, the Dragons worked their way to
reclaim a comfortable 52-35 advantage with 6:01 left on the clock.
Tharrington sparked Mason's run over the final three minutes
with a jumper at 3:09 as Pickard, who entered back into the game at the final
media timeout, immediately hit her second three-pointer of the contest for a
54-42 contest with 2:30 remaining. Mershon followed with a trey of her own to
finish with 26 points as Pickard and Jacobs closed the game with a pair of
buckets for the final 57-46 score.
Mason returns to the court in Atlanta, Ga. visiting Georgia
State for a Sunday matinee at 2 p.m.
