Box Score ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - The Eckerd women's basketball team found itself in yet another tight game on Saturday afternoon against Barry University.
Unfortunately, the Bucs put together the stronger finish and pulled away in the final minutes for a 67-57 win over the Tritons in the McArthur Center.
Barry (11-5, 4-3 SSC) made four straight layups to turn a 51-51 tie into a seven-point lead, then went 8-for-8 from the free throw line in the final 49 seconds to secure the win.
Eckerd (8-6, 4-4 SSC) struggled in the third quarter, scoring just four points as Barry turned a nine-point deficit into a two-point lead by the end. The Tritons missed seven straight shots in the quarter and turned the ball over eight times.
"I was happy with how we executed and attacked them in the first half," said EC head coach
Paul Honsinger. "In the third quarter, we struggled to score and I thought that affected our defensive energy in the second half. Overall, it was a poor defensive game for us."
Still, the Tritons had their chances.
Twice, they fought back to tie the game in the fourth quarter - first on a jumper by
Ashley Folsom and later on a 3-pointer by
Chelsea Johnson. But the Buccaneers executed well down the stretch, working the ball inside for layups on four straight possessions and an 8-1 run that proved to be the difference.
Eckerd pulled back within four points on a traditional 3-point play by Folsom with 50 seconds remaining, but Barry closed it out by making eight straight free throws to keep the Tritons from mounting a late comeback.
EC closed the first half on a 12-3 run to take a 38-31 lead into halftime, then took its largest lead of the game at 40-31 after a Folsom basket to start the third quarter. Folsom led Eckerd with 17 points while
Anna Deegan added 12.
Barry was hot from behind the arc for the entire game, knocking down 10-of-14 3-pointers. Amra Elezovic led all scorers with 29 points, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range.
The Tritons will face a pair of provisional SSC opponents next week visiting Embry-Riddle on Wednesday before hosting Palm Beach Atlantic on Saturday.
"We hope to bounce back next week and put 40 minutes of basketball together," Honsinger said.
