COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – The Ursinus College women's basketball team outscored Haverford 24-12 in the final period to overcome a third quarter deficit in route to a 56-47 conference victory. 


 
With the victory, the Bears improved to 5-8 overall and 2-6 in Centennial Conference action, meanwhile the Fords fall to 10-5 on the season and 7-3 in conference play.
 


Sophomore forward Chinwe Irondi led the offense with her six double-double of the season, tallying 18 points and 12 rebounds. Junior Kelly Grant chipped in with nine points behind a perfect 6-of-6 from the free throw line, while classmate Sarah DiLello added seven points. Junior Natalie Mehl added six points, six rebounds, three assists, and two steals.


 
The Fords struck first with a layup at the 8:03-mark, but the Bears would bounce back scoring six consecutive points holding a four-point lead with 6:39 to play in the opening stanza. First-year Madison Smith shined in the opening minutes, as she dished a pass to Irondi for the opening basket and connected on a layup on the ensuing possession. Haverford responded with a 7-1 run over the next two minutes to recapture a two-point advantage, but the Bears responded with a step-back three-pointer from Mehl at the 4:02-mark. After a miss jumper from Haverford, Grant found Smith in the paint as she dodged the Fords defender with a reverse layup extending the Bears lead to three with 3:03 to play in the first. With the Bears leading 14-13, first-year Makenna Foder drilled a mid-range jump shot in the closing seconds to give Ursinus a three-point edge at the end of the first.
 


Haverford opened the second period with a jump-shot from Abby Ryan, but the Bears responded with baskets from junior Alison Lisanti and Foder to extend their lead to five at the 7:28-mark. The Fords scored seven consecutive points to recapture a 22-20 lead midway through the quarter as the visitors collected back-to-back offensive rebounds capitalizing on the second chance points. Ursinus tied the game at 22 apiece with three minutes to play as Irondi capitalized on a pass from Charlotte DiLello. After a Haverford turnover, Kelly Grant splashed a three-pointer extending the Bears lead to three with 1:57 to play in the half. Ursinus scored the final basket of the half when Smith collected an assist on a pass to Irondi under the rim for the five-point advantage heading into halftime.
 


The Fords opened the second half with back-to-back baskets to cut their deficit to one as Ally Landau knocked down a jumper at the 7:12-mark. With Ursinus leading 27-26, Sarah DiLello scored five-straight points for the Bears after connecting on a three-pointer and drilling a mid-range jump shot. Haverford closed out the final five minutes of the quarter on a 7-0 run to recapture a 35-32 lead heading into the fourth.
 


Ursinus opened the final stanza with five straight points to regain a 37-35 lead at the 9:26 mark. Irondi netted two free throws to cut the deficit to one and a three-pointer from Mehl gave the Bears a two-point edge. Haverford would tie the game at 37 a piece on the ensuing possession as Erin Albright netted a jump-shot, but Ursinus would regain the lead as Irondi connected on a three-point play after being fouled on a layup attempt. With Ursinus leading 40-37, the Fords tied the match at 40 with a three-pointer, but the Bears would use a 4-0 run to recapture a four-point advantage with 5:40 to play. Foder found Irondi under the net for an open layup and a jump shot from Madison Smith on the ensuing possession gave Ursinus the four-point cushion. After a Haverford three-pointer, Foder connected on a jump shot with 3:12 to play to stretch the Ursinus lead to three. Haverford's Robinson collected an offensive rebound and earned an open layup to cut the Bears lead to one at the 2:47-mark. Each defense would step up and limit the offensive opportunities until Irondi knocked down back-to-back free throws with 54 seconds to play. Foder (2-2) and Grant (6-6) would combine to knock down eight straight free throws for the Bears down the stretch to hold off the Fords charge in route to the victory.


 
Ursinus shot 42.2% (19-45) from the field, 33.3% (4-12) from three-point range, and 93.3% (14-15) from the charity stripe. The Bears held a 38-31 advantage in rebounds while the Fords finished with 13 offensive rebounds. Haverford shot 29.5% (18-61) from the field, 27.3% (3-11) from three-point range, and 88.9% (8-9) from the free-throw line. Kayla Robinson led the way for the Fords nearly collecting a double-double with 14 points, nine rebounds, and five steals. Ally Landau chipped in with 10 points, six rebounds, and two assists.
 
 

The Bears will return to action on Saturday as they travel to Baltimore, Maryland for a Centennial Conference matchup with Johns Hopkins.