SWARTHMORE, Pa. – The Ursinus women's basketball team earned a crucial 62-54 victory over Swarthmore College on Saturday afternoon at Tarble Pavilion.

 
With the win, Ursinus improved to 14-9 overall and 8-5 in Centennial Conference play. Meanwhile, the Garnet fell to 8-15 on the season and 4-9 in conference action. The victory marked the Bears' seventh straight win in the series against Swarthmore and kept Ursinus in control of the fourth seed in the Centennial Conference playoffs.

 
Senior guard Ava Possenti paced the Bears' offense with a team-high 19 points and six steals, matching her Ursinus single-season program record with 115 steals this year. Senior Madison Smith added 13 points and four rebounds, while junior Erin Glanz tallied 10 points and three rebounds. Senior guard Makenna Foder matched her career high with nine assists, and sophomore Ruth O'Keeffe grabbed a career-best 10 rebounds.
 

Swarthmore jumped out to an early 4-0 advantage at the 7:25 mark before Smith recorded Ursinus' first basket on a jump shot assisted by Possenti at the seven-minute mark. After a 3-pointer extended the Garnet's lead to five, Ursinus responded with a layup by Smith and a triple from junior Colleen Blackman to tie the game at 7 with 5:15 remaining in the opening quarter. The Bears' defense held Swarthmore scoreless for the next two minutes, while first-year Anna Chimento scored four straight points to give Ursinus an 11-7 lead. After another Garnet 3-pointer, Ursinus closed the period on a 4-0 run to take a 15-10 advantage into the second quarter.
 
 
Ursinus extended its lead to six on consecutive possessions behind a Glanz 3-pointer and a Possenti jump shot, making it 20-14 at the 8:22 mark. Swarthmore answered with five straight points to cut the deficit to one, but Ursinus closed the first half on an 11-3 run to take a 31-22 halftime lead. The stretch was highlighted by a Blackman triple and a steal and fast-break layup from Possenti. Ursinus held Swarthmore to 1-of-9 shooting from the field over the final six minutes of the half.
 

Swarthmore opened the second half on a 5-0 run to trim the margin to 31-27, but a Possenti layup and four straight points from Smith pushed the Bears ahead 37-28 with 6:18 remaining in the third quarter. After another Swarthmore 3-pointer, Glanz answered with her second triple of the game, and a free throw by O'Keeffe gave Ursinus a 41-31 lead. Both teams traded baskets the rest of the period, with Ursinus carrying a 44-36 advantage into the fourth quarter.
 
 
Swarthmore scored the first four points of the final period to cut the deficit to four, but a layup from Foder and four points from Possenti gave Ursinus a 50-44 lead with 5:49 to play. Possenti's layup sparked a 7-2 run as the Bears stretched the lead to 55-46 with 3:57 remaining. Swarthmore made one final push with a 6-2 run to pull within five at 57-52 with under two minutes to play, but Ursinus sealed the win at the free-throw line to secure the 62-54 victory.
 

The Bears shot 37.9% (22-of-58) from the field, 21.1% (4-of-19) from beyond the arc and 66.7% (14-of-21) at the foul line. Swarthmore shot 35.1% (20-of-57) from the floor, 31.3% (5-of-16) from deep and 69.2% (9-of-13) at the stripe. Ursinus held a 21-1 advantage in fast-break points and outscored Swarthmore 17-3 in bench points. Swarthmore's Lily Czub led all scorers with 22 points and 10 rebounds.

 
The Bears return to action Wednesday, February 18, when they host Muhlenberg College at 8 p.m.