East Stroudsburg, Pa. – The Concordia women's basketball team used a strong free-throw performance in the second half to propel them to their first victory of the season on Sunday evening at East Stroudsburg's ESU Classic. The Clippers would defeat the host 78-67 as the team snapped a 10 game losing streak dating back to last season.
The first eight minutes of play would be close between the two teams until a three-points basket by sophomore Alyssa Dawson (Westwood, N.J.) gave Concordia a 20-17 lead. The Clippers would continue to build their lead and with 2:18 remaining in the half Concordia held a double-digit lead. The Warriors would score the final two baskets of the half by the Clippers took a 38-32 lead into the locker room.
East Stroudsburg got within three points of tying the score after a 7-0 run with 15:24 left in the second half. Concordia would stop the Warriors run by scoring seven of the next eight points to gain some breathing room.
With three minutes remaining in the game East Stroudsburg would begin to foul the Clippers in hopes of cutting into the double-digit deficit. Concordia would convert on 13-of-14 foul shots to hold on to the lead and claim their first victory of the season, 78-67. The win over the Warriors is the first for the Clippers since their first ever meeting on Jan. 30, 1988 and snaps a 10-game losing streak against East Stroudsburg according to historical records.
Sophomore Megan Burns (Staten Island, N.Y.) led Concordia with a career-high 20 points off the bench as she shot 10-of-10 from the foul line and added five rebounds in 32 minutes of action. Senior Krystina Agard (Queens, N.Y.) added 17 points as she too shot 10-of-10 from the foul line as the Clippers set an ESU Tournament record of 28 made foul shots, the most in the tournament's history since it began in 1964. Agard would also be named to the All-Tournament Team as Concordia shot a season-high 41.5% (22-35) from the field as the Clippers held a 44-34 advantage in rebounds.
Concordia (1-6, 0-2 CACC) will get back to their Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) schedule this week to take on Felician College on Wednesday evening. The Clippers will take to the court of Job Gym at 6pm in Rutherford, N.J.