SELINSGROVE, PA (November 10, 2021) -- The Susquehanna University women's basketball team erased a 21-point third-quarter deficit in a thrilling come-from-behind home win over Stevens Institute of Technology in action from O.W. Houts Gymnasium Wednesday evening. 

The 21-point come-from-behind win for Susquehanna was its largest margin erased in a victory over at least the last 12 years, as the the River Hawks trailed by 13 points early in the fourth quarter before the comeback. Things didn't start out well though for SU (2-0), as the River Hawks went into the second quarter down 17-10 after shooting 27.8 percent in the opening stanza. The second quarter saw the visiting Ducks (0-1) shoot 52.4 percent on 11-of-21 shooting in the second quarter to extend their lead to 41-23 at the break. 

After halftime, Stevens pushed its lead up to 21 points on a pair of occasions, the latest coming at 6:25 of the third quarter on a free throw from Danielle Cornetta to make the score 45-24. The River Hawks would start their comeback from that point, scoring the game's next 10 points behind five points each from seniors Erin McQuillen and Olivia Brandt. The Stevens lead would stay in double digits though through 30 minutes, as senior Amalia Esposito cut the deficit to 10 with five seconds left in the third on a free throw. 

The final 10 minutes was a thriller, as Allie Moss of Stevens pushed her squad back up by 13 with a three-pointer at 7:55 on the clock. Senior Sadie Comfort responded with back-to-back triples of her own followed by a run-out lay-up by fellow senior Kaitlyn Lynch to make it 55-50 with just over five minutes remaining. The run would continue out of a timeout by the Ducks, as Susquehanna eventually tied the game up at 55 with a 13-0 run that was capped by a McQuillen three-pointer. 

Moss would quiet the crowd with a layup to make it 57-55 Stevens with 3:10 to go, but Lynch scored another lay-up in transition on a nice feed by Esposito to deadlock the game at 57. With 1:11 to go in regulation, SU would take its first lead since 8-6 in the first quarter as Esposito made a beautiful move through the paint and finished with the reverse layup to put Susquehanna up 59-57. The defense for SU would continue to hunker down, allowing no more points while McQuillen hit four free-throws down the stretch to ice the game.

Over the last 7:55 of the game, SU outscored its visitors 21-2, going 7-for-15 from the floor, while forcing Stevens into 1-of-12 shooting and just two points to complete the rally. Susquehanna led for just 5:02 of the contest, with its largest lead coming at the buzzer. 

The River Hawks relied on their senior leadership Wednesday, as 60 of the team's 63 points came from the group. Esposito finished with 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting, grabbing seven rebounds, three assists and five steals. McQuillen tallied 14 points but hit some clutch shots in the second half, and Comfort found her stroke in the second half en route to 13 points and six rebounds. Brandt tallied another double-double, her second in as many games with 10 points and a game-high 14 boards, and Lynch finished with eight points and six caroms. 

Susquehanna finished the game 22-of-60 (36.7 percent) from the floor, but defensively came to life in the second half allowing just five made buckets as Stevens shot 5-of-32 in the final 20 minutes. Jess Broad tallied 12 points, six boards and four blocks to pace Stevens, and Cornetta added 11 points and seven rebounds. Meghan Douglas added eight points and a team-high 10 rebounds. 

Up Next

• The River Hawks will have a quick turnaround, playing host to the Yvonne Young Esworthy Memorial Tournament this weekend Saturday and Sunday. Saturday's games will feature the University of Mary Washington and Wesleyan University at 6 p.m. before SU and William Paterson University at 8 p.m. The consolation game will be at 1 p.m. while the title game will be played Sunday at 3 p.m. with all games being played in O.W. Houts Gymnasium.