GLENSIDE Pa.- The Juniata women's basketball was ultimately unable to secure an overtime victory at Arcadia College on Tuesday night, falling 68-67 in a contest with eight swaps of the lead.
Bri Bodtorf secured a second career double-double with 12 points, ten rebounds, two steals, two blocks, and four assists. Haily Sherman totaled 20 points, her fifth career game of at least 20 points, with a pair of steals and seven rebounds.
Olivia Berg leveled her career-high for points with 14, alongside seven rebounds and a steal. Laney Gerdich collected eight rebounds and six points, while Emily McCann led bench points with six.
After an opening Knights layup, Sherman hit a three from the left wing to get Juniata ahead 3-2. A couple more layups from Sherman on consecutive possessions put the Eagles up 7-3 through the opening five minutes, forcing an Arcadia timeout. A back-and-forth quarter was capped by a Sherman jumper to give Juniata a 17-15 lead.
After a Bodtorf three, the teams traded layups through the early portion of the second, with the Knights making a push for the lead with a three-pointer for a 25-24 scoreline with four minutes left. Arcadia later hit a three from the left wing in the late moments of the half, but two of two from the free throw line for Sarah Betts put Juniata ahead 29-28 at the break.
Arcadia outscored Juniata 8-2 in the opening five minutes of the third quarter. A long Berg jumper followed by a Miller steal, and Bodtorf a pass on the break to Sherman for a layup got Juniata back within one. After a Knights free throw to go up by two, the sides traded points back and forth, with Arcadia eventually getting ahead 42-41. Juniata retook the lead with 22 seconds left, beating a high press from Arcadia and taking the lead on a long jumper from McCann. Arcadia hit a free throw to tie the game heading into the fourth.
McCann opened the scoring with a left-wing jumper, followed by Gerdich hitting two free throws for a 47-43 lead. The sides traded free throws over the next few possessions, with one miss from the Knights giving Juniata a 49-46 lead. Arcadia leveled the game with an open three on the left side, while Juniata got ahead with a free throw and Betts layup on a fast break. Another Arcadia three again tied the game with four minutes to go.
Arcadia scored layups on both sides of a Bodtorf three, putting them ahead 56-55. Kynnedy Miller drew a foul on a rebound on Juniata's next possession, sinking both free throws. Arcadia answered back with two free throws of their own. Gerdich then hit a long jumper to grab the lead for a moment, as Arcadia again answered with a three to go ahead 61-59. On Arcadia's next possession, Bodtorf earned a steal and passed to a Sherman clear of defenders for an open, driving layup to tie the game. Neither side was able to score on their final possession, sending the game into overtime.
Arcadia missed both free throws to open overtime, followed by another Sherman layup on the fast break. Berg and Bodtorf fouled out on consecutive Knights possessions, with Arcadia going 2-for-4 to tie the game. They took the lead with a driving layup with two minutes left. On Juniata's next drive, Miller regained a loose ball and passed to an open Steph Emert on the left wing for a three and a 66-65 lead. Each team earned a foul and got 1 of 2 free throws in their next possessions. After a late timeout, Arcadia drew a foul and hit both free throws to take the lead with five seconds left. The Eagles were unable to get a clean shot off with the time remaining.
Juniata returns from the Thanksgiving break next Wednesday night as they travel to Lycoming College for the program's opening Landmark Conference contest and their first time playing Lycoming as a Landmark school.
