LANGHORNE, Pa. – The Cairn University women's basketball team won, 62-48 at home against Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC) adversary Cedar Crest College on Thursday evening.
Cedar Crest (2-9, 1-7 CSAC) opened up the scoring by going on a 7-2 run to start the game. Cairn (8-6, 6-3 CSAC) responded by trimming the Falcon lead throughout the quarter and gained a 15-14 lead at the end of the frame. The Highlanders maintained that lead in the second quarter and held a slim 26-25 advantage at halftime.
In the third quarter, the Highlanders led 40-37 near the end of the period, before they made their run to the tune of a seven-straight points from senior
Dakota Hitchner (Ocean City, NJ / Atlantic Christian) to close out the frame with a 47-37 lead. Cedar Crest came within double digits at 52-43 with 6:45 left to play, but that would be the closest the deficit would get, as the Highlanders allowed just five Falcon points through the final seven minutes to secure the victory.
Cairn shot 40.7% (24-59) from the field in the contest and held the Falcons to just 29.4% (20-68) shooting in the contest. The difference in the game came down to the rebounding department, as the Highlanders dominated the glass to the tune of a 54-32 rebounding advantage, the most rebounds by the Highlanders this season.
Cairn was led offensively by Hitchner, who notched her fourth-straight 20-point performance (eighth in her last nine games) with a game-high 24 points and tied a season-high with six assists. Hitchner was followed by freshman
Kailee Sobrino (Vail, AZ / Empire HS) who tallied a career-high 16 points and swiped a team-high three steals.
Seniors
Markie Watson (Jupiter, FL / Holy Cross Academy) and
Korin Bradley (Levittown, PA / Bucks County Community College) boosted Cairn's rebounding effort with 13 and 12 rebounds (respectively), both career-highs.
Cairn will be back in action on Saturday, January 22 when they look for the season sweep against conference foe Bryn Athyn College on the road at 1 p.m.
