CANTON, N.Y.— After a slow start offensively, the William Smith basketball team fell to St. Lawrence 81-59 in a Liberty League contest this afternoon in Ronald T. Burkman Gymnasium.

Ava Lobozzo and Giana Lobozzo led the Herons with 11 and 9 points each, respectively. The duo combined for nine rebounds, six assists and three steals in the loss. Junior McKenzie Mandyck added in eight points and an assist for William Smith. First-year Bridget McCleary and sophomore Charlotte Miller chipped in seven points each in the loss and combined for six rebounds, three steals and an assist.

St. Lawrence saw four players drop double-digit points in the win and were led by Elizabeth Flynn's double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds. Caelan McHarney chipped in 15 points, six assists and five rebounds, while Annie Perry added 13 points, three rebounds and three steals. Norah Niesz tallied 12 points and two rebounds in the win for the Saints.

TEAM TOTALS

• Rebounds: St. Lawrence 37, William Smith 30
• Assists: St. Lawrence 19, William Smtih 15
• Turnovers: William Smith 15, St. Lawrence 11
• Steals: St. Lawrence 10, William Smith 8

HERON STAT LEADERS

• Scoring: Ava Lobozzo 11, Giana Lobozzo 9, McKenzie Mandyck 8, Bridget McCleary 7, Charlotte Miller 7
• Rebounding: Giana Lobozzo 5, Ava Lobozzo 4, Bridget McCleary 4, Anne Keneally 4, Faith Okoli 4
• Assists: Amelia McCulley 4, Ava Lobozzo 3, Giana Lobozzo 3, Molly Walsh 2
• Steals: Bridget McCleary 3, Giana Lobozzo 3, Amelia McCulley 1, Anne Keneally 1

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Saints came out hot in the opening quarter, going on a 16-2 scoring run to open the game. St. Lawrence maintained the momentum in the first quarter as it pushed the pace and found seven points from fast breaks. The Saints also used 12 points in the paint to grab an early 23-8 lead over the Herons.
• William Smith responded well in the second quarter after its offense stepped up and went 3-of-5 from behind the arc. McCleary had a big second quarter for the Herons as she dropped seven points and forced two steals as William Smith chipped away at St. Lawrence's lead. Despite the strong second quarter, the Herons trailed by 12 heading into halftime.
• Both teams came out strong to start the second half and found most of the game in the paint. St. Lawrence tallied 14 points in the paint compared to William Smith's 12, but the Saints made use of their second chance opportunities to maintain their lead. Mandyck and Keneally impressed for the Herons in the third quarter and kept William Smith in the game heading into the final 10 minutes.
• St. Lawrence went on a 5-0 run to open the fourth quarter and never looked back. The Saints used strong free throw shooting to manage the clock. Miller came off the bench for the Herons and made an immediate impact with seven points but the Saints locked down on defense to close out the conference matchup on top, 81-59.

FOR THE RECORD

• William Smith falls to 2-19 overall with a 2-12 mark in Liberty League play.
• St. Lawrence improves to 14-7 on the season with a 8-6 mark in conference play.

UP NEXT
 
William Smith will be back in action Friday, Feb. 14, when it welcomes Skidmore to Geneva for a Liberty League showdown. Action between the Herons and the Thoroughbreds is set to start at 5:30 p.m. in Bristol Gym.