BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Junior Alex Giannaros scored 17 points to lead three Terriers in double figures, but the Boston University women's basketball team dropped a 64-62 contest to Lehigh on Saturday afternoon at Stabler Arena.
 
Missing the Patriot League's leading scorer, senior Caitlin Weimar, due to injury, BU (13-8, 5-5 PL) overcame an 11-0 deficit to start the game, taking a one-possession advantage in the fourth quarter. However, the Terriers shot 2-for-13 from the field in the final frame, with the Mountain Hawks (13-8, 5-5 PL) taking the lead for good at the 7:33 mark.
 
Giannaros made seven of 14 shots, including 3-for-5 from distance. Senior Kelsi Mingo did the same from three-point range, totaling 14 points. Freshman Aoibhe Gormley posted a career-high 13 points with five rebounds and four assists.
 
Ella Stemmer led four Mountain Hawks in double digits with 13 points. Meghan O'Brien and Remi Sisselman each scored 12 points, while Lily Fandre added 11 points.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• BU missed its first seven shots, allowing Lehigh to build a 9-0 lead. The Terriers called timeout at the 6:33 mark of the first.
• After that, Giannaros drained a pair of threes, and Mingo blocked a Sisselman shot for a layup to bring BU within 16-14 after one quarter.
• The Terriers pulled within one point on three separate occasions in the first half of the second frame. Mingo drilled a corner three off the inbound, Giannaros canned a midrange jumper, and Gormley went coast-to-coast for a layup with 5:18 on the clock to make it 28-27 in the Mountain Hawks' favor.
• With 3:22 until halftime, Giannaros took the ball on the left wing, and shed her defender, who fell to the ground. That helped Giannaros sink a left-elbow jumper to cut the Terrier deficit to 30-29.
• BU briefly took the 33-32 edge, its first lead of the game, when Gormley found freshman Audrey Ericksen underneath the rim before the shot clock expired. However, Colleen McQuillen's layup before the buzzer gave Lehigh the one-point advantage at the break.
• Ericksen's spinning layup on the low block and a three from sophomore Anastasiia Semenova put BU ahead 38-36 in the opening two minutes of the second half.
• Tied at 44-44, Mingo drained two consecutive triples, then freshman Inés Monteagudo Pardo knocked down a corner trey to hand the Terriers their largest lead, 53-48, with 3:04 on the clock.
• However, the Mountain Hawks capped the third on a 9-1 run, as Fandre's driving layup beat the buzzer to make it 57-54 Lehigh heading to the final quarter.
• Giannaros briefly put BU on top after she connected on a right-wing three from senior Sophie Beneventine's steal, but Sisselman countered with her own triple for a 60-58 Lehigh lead with 7:33 left.
• Gormley hit two free throws to pull the Terriers within two, but a Sisselman layup with 2:10 on the clock gave the Mountain Hawks a 64-60 lead.
• On the next play, Gormley drove down the right lane to bank a shot off glass and in, making it 64-62.
• BU had the final possession with 16.3 seconds left in regulation, but Giannaros' driving layup was off the mark in the final seconds. 

STATS

• The Terriers made over 44 percent of their shots, shooting 8-for-18 from deep.
• Lehigh was just 7-for-26 from beyond the arc, but made just under 44 percent of its shots.
• BU won the rebounding battle, 34-27.
• Gormley, Ericksen, and Semenova each tallied five rebounds.
• The Terriers sported a 20-14 edge in bench points.
• Lehigh was advantageous in points off turnovers (22-15), paint points (30-18), and second-chance points (10-5).

NOTES

• Giannaros has nailed three or more triples across seven contests this year. She has now achieved that feat 15 times against Patriot League opponents in her career.
• Mingo is now second in the conference during Patriot League play with 1.9 three-pointers per game.
• Gormley becomes the fifth Terrier this season to post her first-career double-digit scoring performance, and third freshman. In her last six games, she sports a 4.8 assist/turnover ratio.
• BU falls to 1-5 on the road in conference action this year.
• The all-time series swings back to Lehigh's advantage, 12-11.

UP NEXT

• Following the league-wide mid-week bye, BU hosts Bucknell on Saturday (Feb. 10). Opening tip is set for 2 p.m.