Cardinals suffer first loss with 72-60 setback to Elizabethtown

LANCASTER, Pa. – The Cardinals suffered their first loss of the new season on Saturday evening as CUA fell to a strong Elizabethtown squad by a 72-60 score at the Terry Greene Memorial at Franklin & Marshall.  Jill Woerner scored a team-high 14 points for the Cardinals (1-1) as she garnered All-Tournament Team honors.

Joining Woerner in double-figures for CUA was classmate Jenny McGann, who scored 13 points and also pulled down five rebounds.  Woerner led the Cardinals with six boards and six steals, while Mary McGann handed out a team-best three helpers.

CUA shot only 30-percent for the game, including a 2 of 11 showing from three-point range and the Cardinals committed 21 turnovers.  CUA did force 25 Elizabethtown turnovers.

Three Blue Jays hit for double figures, led by Kaity Snyder who sank 11 of 13 shots for 25 points to go along with a game-high eight boards.  Kendra Beittel (15) and Megan Strohman (11) also scored in double digits, as Elizabethtown shot 46-percent as a team.

CUA led 10-5 early on, but the Blue Jays quickly tied things at 12 when Beittel got inside for a layup.  Elizabethtown then took the lead on a Snyder bucket at the 10:13 mark, while Beittel’s jumper less than a minute later made it a 16-12 game.

A three-point play by Woerner and a Jenny McGann basket gave the lead back to CUA at 17-16, but Kelly Sauerzopf answered with a jumper to give the Blue Jays a one-point advantage.

CUA took the lead back when Kerri Confrey scored on a fast break layup with 8:12 remaining in the opening half, but Snyder tied things at 20 with her two-pointer at the 7:14 mark.

After Elizabethtown had extended to a four-point lead, Jenny McGann sank a foul shot to make it 24-21 with 4:32 to go, while Brielle Crites’ jumper a minute later brought the Cardinals within two at 25-23.

Two free throws by Snyder with 1:59 left before halftime made the score 28-24 in favor of the Blue Jays, but CUA scored the final three points to go into intermission down just one.

A three-point play on Elizabethtown’s first possession by Snyder pushed the Blue Jays lead to 31-27, but Woerner sank a free throw and Crites hit a jumper to bring CUA to within one at 31-30.

Following a Liz Briones jumper at the 16:09 mark CUA was down only three, but from there the Blue Jays went on an 11-0 run to take a 46-32 lead with 13:39 to play.

CUA then answered with five straight to pull within nine at 46-37, but Elizabethtown ran off the next eight points to increase its lead to 54-37 with 8:33 to go.

The Cardinals were never able to get any closer than 11 the rest of the way, which came with 3:26 on the clock, as Elizabethtown seemed to have an answer for every CUA run.

CUA will open its home schedule on Tuesday, November 23 when the Cardinals welcome Keystone College to DuFour Gymnasium.  Tip-off is set for 5:30.