Lehigh women’s basketball defeats Lafayette 62-48 in rivalry game showdown

With a snowstorm approaching and temperatures dropping, Lehigh and Lafayette met once again for a highly anticipated rivalry game. 

Playing in front of its home crowd, Lehigh (10-8, 6-2 Patriot League) defeated Lafayette (7-12, 3-5 Patriot League) 62-48, sending the Leopards back to Easton with a rivalry loss.  

The Mountain Hawks’ win came amid recent roster challenges. After forfeiting a Jan. 16 game against Navy because of a lack of healthy players, Lehigh added Cyndea Labissiere and Melani Dowling to the roster. 

The team responded with a 67-61 overtime win against Loyola Maryland on Wednesday and proved Saturday that the performance with the new lineup was not a fluke.

First-year guard Alana Reddy led Lehigh with 15 points. Sophomore guard and forward Belle Bramer added 15 points and four rebounds.

Despite injuries and lineup adjustments, Bramer said the team has embraced a next-player-up mentality. 

“We’ve had a lot of unfortunate injuries this year and one of our team mottos talks about being the next person to step up,” she said. “Having a full team win felt so good and people on the bench stepped up when we needed it.” 

Reddy played 37 minutes and contributed on both ends of the floor, knocking down five 3-pointers and adding three rebounds to fuel Lehigh’s offense. She also pressured Lafayette on the perimeter, strengthening the Mountain Hawks’ defense. 

Reddy said the team emphasizes a “like it matters” mindset. 

“We have been through so much together, and we do everything in practices and games like it matters,” Reddy said. “It was a close game and we knew (Lafayette) was going to stick right there the whole time, but we kept our foot on the petal and never took it off.” 

Lafayette junior guard Teresa Kiewiet scored 17 points and three turnovers. Senior guard Sauda Ntaconayigize added 11 points, along with one assist, steal and turnover.

The Leopards were coming off a 66-55 loss to Boston University, in which they shot 32% from the field.

Lafayette led 20-16 at the end of the first quarter, shooting 43.8% from the field compared to Lehigh’s 31.6%. 

Lehigh took control in the second quarter, holding Lafayette to nine points. Four Leopard turnovers led to six Mountain Hawk points, and Lehigh shot 62.5% from the field in the period.  Bramer scored four points on two drives as Lehigh took a 34-29 lead into halftime  

Kiewiet led all scorers with 12 points at halftime. She added three rebounds and two assists to keep the Leopards within striking distance.   

Lehigh never relinquished the lead in the second half. The Mountain Hawks built their largest lead — 15 points — midway through the third quarter as Lafayette struggled offensively, shooting 30.8% against  Lehigh’s defense. 

The Mountain Hawks closed the game by limiting Lafayette to seven points in the fourth quarter. The Leopards shot 23.1%  in the final period and 1-of-4 from 3-point range. 

Lehigh finished shooting 23-of-58 from the field and collected 37 rebounds. Lafayette shot 17-of-51. 

With the win, Lehigh extended its lead in the all-time series to  40-14. 

Coach Addie Micir said the team continues to find ways to win despite adversity.  

“Winning in the Patriot League is hard, and winning with everything we’ve been going through is harder,” she said.  

Lehigh remains in third place in the conference and Lafayette sits in sixth. 

The Mountain Hawks will host Army West Point on Wednesday at 6 p.m. for their annual Pink Game.