HUNTINGDON, Pa.- The Juniata women's basketball team couldn't quite complete the comeback in their return to the hardwood as they lost to Moravian, 68-57, Friday evening inside Memorial Gymnasium. It had been 328 days since a Juniata team competed.
The Greyhounds opened the scoring a minute into the game. The Eagles immediately countered with a Gracie Stauffer (Loysville, Pa. / West Perry) bucket in the paint off a pass from Cassie Mock (Martinsburg, Pa. / Central Martinsburg). Moravian scored inside, and Stauffer responded with another layup with Averie Hess (Jersey Shore, Pa. / Jersey Shore) providing the assist this time. Juniata went cold for the next five minutes, with Stauffer's next layup of the game making it 11-6. The inside score gave Stauffer he 1000 career point.
Congrats to Gracie Stauffer who scored her 1,000 career point tonight in the home opener vs. Moravian! #wingsup #d3hoops pic.twitter.com/lkAPTkgeWh
— Juniata Athletics (@JuniataEagles) February 6, 2021
Mock found Grace Long (Harrisburg, Pa. / Central Dauphin) for a jumper on the wing to make it 13-8, but Moravian coveted a runner from the right side just before the buzzer sounded to push their lead to seven after one.
Hess converted a three off a feed from Jamie Mahigel (Lewistown, Pa. / Mifflin County) to cut the deficit to four early in the second. The teams traded makes a few minutes later as another Stauffer score inside made it 17-13 with six and half minutes to go. Moravian took control from there, closing the half on a 14-3 run as Juniata trailed, 31-16. Taylor Vrabel's (Chambersburg, Pa. / Chambersburg) layup broke the four-minute drought in the final seconds of the half.
The Greyhounds opened the quarter with a jumper, and Mock found Stauffer for back to back buckets in the post as Juniata got within 13. The teams went back and forth but Juniata couldn't get closer, with Moravian leading by 15 a little more than half the third quarter gone. Hess swished another triple, Moravian scored inside, Stauffer converted an and-one, and Mock's layup off a Madison Colyer (Newville, Pa. / Big Spring) cut the deficit to one. Kynnedy Miller (Huntingdon, Pa. / Huntingdon Area HS) dumped it inside to Stauffer for a layup, and Hess found her for another as the Eagles got within five. The Greyhounds scored the final five points of the quarter to lead by 10 heading into the final frame.
Juniata trailed by nine with a little over five minutes to go before a Colyer jumper, and a pair of Mock foul shots cut the deficit to five. Moravian made two free throws of their own, and JC called timeout. Stauffer scored inside two straight times down the floor to cut the deficit to three with two and half minutes to go in the game. The second was an and-one, but she missed the ensuing free throw. Moravian push their lead to seven in the final minute, but a Long three after a timeout gave JC a little hope. Moravian then made their free throws down the stretch to ice the game.
Mock dished out a career-high 12 assists in the contest.
Juniata will return to action at Moravian, Sunday at 4:00.
