IMMACULATA, Pa. - After trailing by as many as ten points in the first half, the Immaculata University women's basketball team battled all the way back to take a two-point lead in the early stages of the second half, but the Mighty Macs were unable to maintain their surge down the stretch, falling to Moravain Wednesday night at Alumnae Hall, 77-65.

Theresa Kearney, Natalie Ayoub and Shannon Kelly each scored in double figures in the effort, led by a season-high 18 from Kearney.

HOW IT HAPPENED
-The Macs fell behind early in the opening quarter, as Moravian jumped out to a ten-point lead four minutes into the contest. After cutting the deficit to seven at the end of the first, Kearney and Annie Kohutka each drained jumpers to begin the second period, making it a one-possession game.
-With 2:42 remaining in the half and the Macs trailing by eight, Meghan Ricker knocked down a three to spark a 7-2 run going into halftime to cut the deficit to three, capped off by a Kohutka steal and score with five seconds left on the clock.
-Kohutka carried her strong end to the half into the third quarter, as the junior knocked down the first bucket of the third to ger the Macs within one before picking up two more points in the paint on the following possession to give IU its first lead of the game, 33-32.
-The following four minutes featured a flurry of back-and-forth scoring on fastbreak opportunities as the two sides stayed within a possession of each other. With the Macs down two and under five minutes remaining in the third, Ricker buried another three to push the Macs back ahead by one.
-Despite the Macs and Greyhounds holding at a 48-all tie with 2:12 left in the third, the visitors ripped off a 6-1 run to end the quarter to take a 54-49 lead into the final ten minutes of regulation.
-Moravian would not look back after taking the late third-quarter lead, outscoring the Macs 23-16 in the fourth quarter to take the 77-65 win.

TEAM COMPARISON
-The Mighty Macs shot 24-for-54 (44.4%) from the field Wednesday night, while the Greyhounds shot at a 42.6 percent clip (29-68).
-Both sides were unable to get in rhythm from beyond the arc, as the Macs were 7-of-21 compared to Moravian's 3-of-11 showing.
-Moravian out-rebounded Immaculata by a 43-21 clip.
-The Macs caused 15 Moravian turnovers and recorded eight steals, but committed 20 turnovers of their own in the effort.

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
-Points: Kearney 18, Ayoub/Kelly 10
-Rebounds: Ayoub/Rigo 5, Kearney 4
-Assists: Ballinger 5, Kelly 4
-Blocks: Ayoub/Kearney 2
-Steals: Ayoub 4, Ricker 2

UP NEXT
Immaculata (3-4) travels to Wesley Saturday for its first-ever Atlantic East Conference game at noon.