ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y.—Three different Herons dropped double-digit points as the William Smith basketball team slipped away with a 63-62 come-from-behind conference win over Bard this evening in Stevenson Athletic Center.

Sophomore Amelia McCulley led the Herons with 14 points and eight rebounds in the conference thriller. She added two blocks, two steals and two assists in the win for William Smith. First-year Jojo Sulmasy came up huge down the stretch and tallied 11 points and six rebounds for the Herons. Senior Molly Walsh chipped in 10 points, a season-high three steals, one assist and a board this in the win.

Bard was led by Aislynn Dixon with 23 points, seven rebounds and three assists in the loss. She shot 7-for-9 from behind the arc to keep the Raptors in the game. Lexi Miller chipped in a double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds against the Herons.

TEAM TOTALS

• Rebounds: Bard 46, William Smith 42
• Assists: Bard 14, William Smith 11
• Turnovers: Bard 22, William Smith 10
• Steals: William Smith 13, Bard 5
• Blocked Shots: Bard 4, William Smith 3

HERON STAT LEADERS

• Scoring: Amelia McCulley 14, Jojo Sulmasy 11, Molly Walsh 10, Giana Lobozzo 9
• Rebounding: Anne Keneally 9, Amelia McCulley 8, Ava Lobozzo 6, Jojo Sulmasy 6
• Assists: Giana Lobozzo 5, Ava Lobozzo 3, Amelia McCulley 2, Molly Walsh 1
• Steals: Giana Lobozzo 5, Molly Walsh 3, Ava Lobozzo 2, Amelia McCulley 2, Miranda Martin 1

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Bard jumped out to a 5-0 lead to open the game and grabbed the early momentum. Both teams struggled to nail shots, but William Smith went 5-for7 from the free throw line to grab a 14-12 lead heading into the second quarter.
• The Raptors responded with a strong second quarter that saw them shoot 41.7 from the floor, including 100% from behind the arc. The Herons struggled to respond as they shot a game-low 11% from the floor. Bard found five points from three players and outscored William Smith 18-7 in the second quarter to grab its biggest lead of the day. The Raptors headed into halftime up 30-21.
• The Herons fought back in the third and found a rhythm, shooting 58% from the floor. William Smith found 10 points from the paint and were led by Walsh and Giana Lobozzo with five points each to bring William Smith within five points heading into the final 10 minutes.
• Bard extended their lead to six with six minutes left before William Smith began to chip away at the lead. The Herons went on an 8-0 scoring run to regain the lead for the first time since the opening quarter with a Sulmasy layup. William Smith extended its lead to as much as six points late in the fourth and shot well from the free throw line, but the Raptors weren't done yet. Bard fought back and sunk a late deep three pointer, but the clock ran out as the Herons closed out the conference matchup on top 63-62.

FOR THE RECORD

• William Smith improves to 2-12 on the year with a 2-5 mark in conference play.
• Bard falls to 2-12 overall and 0-7 in the Liberty League.

UP NEXT
 
William Smith will be back in action tomorrow when it concludes its three-game road trip with a conference matchup at Skidmore. Action between the Herons and the Thoroughbreds is set for 2 p.m. in Williamson Sports Center.