WOMEN'S BASKETBALL FALLS TO BENTLEY

PLEASANTVILLE, NY- The Pace University women's basketball team lost the Northeast-10 Conference opponent Bentley College, 65-62, at the Goldstein Fitness Center on Pace's Pleasantville campus. The Setters drop to 14-5 overall, 9-5 in the NE-10 while the Falcons improve to 14-5 and 10-5 in conference play.

Pace took control early in the game, jumping out to a 21-8 advantage at the 12:20 mark of the first half. The Setters extended their lead to as much as 14 points at 30-16 with just under nine minutes to go in the half. Bentley rallied back but found themselves trailing 40-31 at the break as the Setters shot a 15-for-29 (51.7%) in the opening period. Hannah Sheppard (Norwich, CT/Norwich Free) led the way for Pace, scoring 11 of her game-high 16 points in the half.

The tide turned towards Bentley in the final period as the Falcons opened up the second half with a 17-8 run to tie the score 48 with 11:44 left in the game. Lauren Moore scored six points in the Bentley rally, totaling 14 of her game-high 16 points in the final period. The Falcons would take the lead on the ensuing possession as Shannon Kirwan hit a jumper to put Bentley up by two and take a lead that they would never relinquish. Bentley pushed their lead to seven with 3:35 remaining in the game but Pace battled back to get as close as four with 29 seconds to go as Stephanie Klingele (Staten Island, NY/St. John Villa) (Staten Island, NY/St. John Villa) connected on a pair of free throws but Kirwan went 4-for-4 at the charity stripe down the stretch to secure the win for Bentley. The Setters hung tough but their shots struggled to find the mark as they shot 9-for-31 (29%) in the final period. Bentley also held the advantage on the boards for the game at 37-28.

For Pace, Sheppard scored 16 points, while grabbing six rebounds. Liran Buchris (Massad, Israel/Great Neck South) (Massad, Israel/Great Neck South) tallied 12 points and four assists, while Klingele finished with 10 points.

For the Falcons, Moore finished with 16 points, three boards and five assists. Kirwan tallied 12 points and five rebounds, while McLean chipped in 12 points, four rebounds and a game-high three steals. Erica Kirwan recorded a personal best and game-high 10 rebounds.

The Setters return to action on when they travel to Easton, MA to take on Northeast-10 Conference foe Stonehill College on Saturday, January 27 for a 1:30 pm tip-off.