BRYN ATHYN, Pa. - It was a heart-breaking United East conference loss for the Gallaudet University women's basketball team here Saturday as they fell to Bryn Athyn College at the buzzer in overtime, 59-57, after the Bison made a stirring comeback in the second half to tie the game in regulation.

The loss bumps Gallaudet (15-10, 12-4 United East) down a spot in the final regular-season standings as the Bison a tiebreaker to secure the No. 3 seed in the upcoming United East tournament.

A slow start in the first half, with the Bison shooting 20 percent from the field, had the Lions (19-6, 12-4 United East) leading the GU by 13 at halftime, 28-15.

Gallaudet was able to claw its way back into the game thanks to a 12-2 run in the third quarter, punctuated by a Sunita Schmidjorg (Austin, Texas) two-pointer at the buzzer to tie the game at 33-33. That set the stage for a dramatic see-saw battle between both teams in the final quarter.

The Bison managed to get a lead and extend it to seven points, 47-40, their largest lead of the game, with 3:49 left in regulation only to see Bryn Athyn make a 9-2 run to tie the game at 49 all. Bryn Athyn threw away the ball in the waning seconds and GU had a good look at the basket but missed the layup and a chance for its own buzzer-beater celebration.

Gallaudet jumped out to a 55-51 lead with 2:13 left in overtime before the host Lions outscored the Bison 8-2. The Lions took a 57-55 lead with 17 seconds before two made free throws by senior center Alexis Roberts (Newton, Miss.) tied the game at 57 with four seconds left. It was just enough time for Bryn Athyn to get two shots at the basket. Senior guard Alayna Day missed a shot down in the post but got her rebound and put the ball back as the clock reached 0.0 seconds and the ball went into the net. The officials confirmed the basket, and Bryn Athyn celebrated the dizzying victory on its senior day.

Roberts poured in a career-high 24 points and pulled down 10 rebounds coming off the bench. Roberts kept Gallaudet's hopes alive with six crucial points down the stretch as she was responsible for 60 percent of the Bison's final 10 points in the game. Senior guard Raj Guettler (Frederick, Md.) picked up her 10th double-double of the season with 10 points and 12 rebounds, while also contributing seven assists.

Senior guard Claire Ruiz-Tucker (Middletown, Md.) chipped in with seven points and four steals, while senior center Hannah Puent (Indianapolis, Ind.) put up a gritty performance with five points and eight rebounds despite being in foul trouble for the bulk of the game. Sophomore guard Cam Lexow (Abington, Pa.) was held scoreless for the first time in her career.

Zhimayi Smith led the way for Bryn Athyn with 18 points while Day finished the game for the Lions with a double-double (16 points, 11 rebounds) and the game-winning putback.

BISON TRACKS

• GU is 8-2 in its last 10 games
• Gallaudet splits the season series with Bryn Athyn
• This is GU's first loss at Bryn Athyn since Nov. 29, 2016 (64-50)
• The Bison hold a 10-4 series edge over the Lions since 2013-14 season

UP NEXT
As a top four seed Gallaudet receives a first-round bye. The Bison will host a United East quarterfinal game next Saturday, Feb. 22. The game time will be determined after the first-round contests have completed on Wednesday.