BABSON PARK, MA (December 29, 2023) - The Susquehanna women's basketball team defeated the Babson College Beavers by a score of 61-53 Friday afternoon in their first game in 10 days, and first game of the Babson Winter Tournament. 

Despite the long layoff between contests, the River Hawk offense did not miss a beat as they matched the Beavers shot for shot before going on a 12-2 run near the end of first quarter and taking a 26-19 lead going into the second.  

However, the rest of the game was a defensive struggle as Susquehanna held Babson College to just 5 points in the second quarter on 2-13 shooting from the field, while squeezing out a little more offense with 13 points in the quarter to take a 39-24 lead into the locker room. Kaitlyn Lynch led the River Hawks in scoring with 11 points, with Julia Roth right behind her with 10 points to go along with nine rebounds and three assists.  

The third quarter saw the Beavers storm back to cut the deficit to six points behind the duo Katelyn Mollica and Samantha Reale, while Susquehanna's offense struggled shooting 1-13 from the field, 0-5 from the three-point line, and scoring only three points as they clung to a 42-36 lead heading into the final stanza.  

Susquehanna managed to get control back, getting the lead up to 11 points early on, but a barrage of free throws from the Beavers brought the lead back down to four, but the River Hawks remained aggressive as Lauren Kline, Kenzie Selvaggi, and Julia Pinkert drew fouls and made clutch free throws of their own to keep the Beavers at arm's length and hold on for a 61-53 win.  

Three River Hawk players scored in double figures with Lynch leading the team with 19 points, while Roth and Pinkert scored 15 and 10 points, respectively. Roth also led the team with 16 rebounds, including 10 on the offensive end, which led to 13 second chance points. Susquehanna also dominated the paint, scoring 28 points in the paint to just 14 for the Beavers and capitalized off their opponents' mistakes with 17 points off 18 Beaver turnovers.  

Now 6-4 on the season, Susquehanna will be back in action tomorrow afternoon for their second game of Babson Winter Tournament, this time against the Colby College Mules. That game will tip off at noon.