FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Dan Donohue, Assistant Athletic Director for Sports Information, 610-606-4666 x. 3725
FALCONS EARN A HOOPS WIN AT VALLEY FORGE CHRISTIAN
Phoenixville, PA (November 30, 2010) - Postgame beads of perspiration were evident on both the Cedar Crest players and their fans, as the Falcon faithful sweated out a 65-60 non-conference road victory at Valley Forge Christian College.
Although Cedar Crest led most of the way, the Falcons just weren't quite able to put the game out of the reach of the feisty Patriot squad. Valley Forge's only lead was by three in the opening few minutes as the Falcons adjusted to covering the Patriots' 6'-3" sophomore forward Amanda Compton. Cedar Crest took control at the 15:11 mark on a jumper by junior Lizzy Sunderhaus (Hamilton, OH/Stephen T. Badin) and went on to stretch the lead to as many as seven on several occasions in the first half. Each time however, Valley Forge closed the gap, including tying the score at 20-all on a shot by Compton with 5:25 to go before the break. Cedar Crest ended the half on a 10-5 run to enter the locker room up 30-25.
The Patriots started the second half with some urgency, managing two steals, forcing a few turnovers, and burying two three-pointers to tie the score at 35-35 just over 2:30 in. After a Cedar Crest timeout to settle the troops, the Falcons began to slowly rebuild the lead using the same formula that worked for them in the first half - pounding the ball inside to Sunderhaus, and cleaning the glass. For the game, Cedar Crest won the war on the boards, 47 rebounds to 28.
The second half was almost entirely a two-possession game, with Cedar Crest's lead hovering between two and six points. The Falcons took their largest lead of the night, nine points at 63-54, with 1:59 remaining on a clutch three-pointer by sophomore point guard Megan DeMutis (Norristown, PA/Kennedy-Kenrick). The Patriots, however, didn't flinch, going on to score six unanswered points to draw within three points with just :21 remaining. Forced to foul, Valley Forge put freshman Amber Wehry (Klingerstown, PA/Tri-Valley) on the line, who coolly knocked down both shots with just :14 left to play. Wehry finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds for her first collegiate double double and her 4-4 shooting from the stripe was a key to the win. Senior Leann Wallower (Havertown, PA/Haverford) led the Falcons in scoring with 19 points on 8 of 13 shooting, while Sunderhaus had 17 points and led both teams in boards with 14 for her fourth consecutive double double. Senior Kelley Cipriani (Medford, NJ/Shawnee) had a nice outing with ten rebounds, and DeMutis was impressive as she continued to mature into her starting role - seven points, six boards, five assists and two steals.
The Falcons improve to 3-2 on the season, while Valley Forge drops to 3-5. On Thursday, December 2nd, Cedar Crest kicks off conference play by hosting CSAC rival Immaculata University at 7:00 p.m.
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