GENEVA, N.Y.—Sophomores Gabrielle Eure and Courtney Chase led the William Smith College basketball team in its upset bid against Liberty League rival St. Lawrence University, but the Herons came up just short of victory this afternoon. The Saints escaped Bristol Gym with a 71-64 win.
 
Eure was 6-of-11 from the floor and 4-of-6 at the line, posting her fourth double-double of the year on 16 points and 11 rebounds. She also had two of William Smith's three steals. Chase notched a career-high 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting, making the only 3-pointer she attempted and both of her free throws. Senior guard Ali Pliszka finished with 14 points, including three 3-pointers, and senior forward Chloe Hayter had 13 points and seven rebounds.
 
William Smith (1-9, 0-2) committed a season-low seven turnovers and finished plus three in turnover margin. The Herons were outrebounded 46-41, but the Saints entered the game averaging plus 9.1 in rebounding margin. And, while SLU had the advantage on the glass, William Smith outscored the visitors 21-6 in second chance points.
 
St. Lawrence (8-3, 3-1) had just two players reach double digits. Sophomore forward Caroline Dalton scored a game-high 19 points and senior guard Kara McDuffee logged 17 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Junior guard Lauren Quattrocchi just missed a double-double of her own with nine points and a game-high nine assists.
 
The Saints shot better from the floor than their hosts, .420 to .338, and took advantage of their depth. St. Lawrence's bench outscored William Smith's 18-4.
 
Through the first 11 minutes of the game, neither team led by more than a single possession. SLU finally broke that pattern with a 10-2 run that gave the Saints a 26-19 lead. Dalton and Quattrocchi each netted five points during the surge that saw the Herons go three minutes between field goals.
 
William Smith countered with seven of the next nine points to get within two by the 4:33 mark and went into halftime trailing 36-32. Chase led all scorers at the break with 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting.
 
In the second half, St. Lawrence stretched its advantage to a game-high eight five minutes in, but William Smith didn't let the Saints break the game open. The Herons scored five straight points, capped by a Eure layup at 7:39 to make it a 53-51 game. Over the next three minutes, William Smith twice more made it a one-possession game, but each time St. Lawrence scored at the other end of the floor to hold onto its lead.
 
Pliszka made 1-of-2 free throws with 92 seconds left to make it a 3-point game, but Dalton drained a 3-pointer at the other end of the floor to effectively dash the Herons' comeback hopes. McDuffee sealed the win with a 4-for-4 effort at the free throw line in the final minute.
 
William Smith will be back in action on Tuesday, Jan. 13, when the Herons visit RIT. The Liberty League game tips off at 6 p.m. The Saints return home to host No. 3 Amherst on Tuesday at 3 p.m.