Strong Fourth Quarter Propels #13 Tartans to Victory Against #23 Rochester

(PITTSBURGH, Pa.) - The 13th-ranked Carnegie Mellon University women's basketball team defeated 23rd-ranked University of Rochester, 71-62, on Friday, January 20 at home in Skibo Gymnasium. The Tartans improve to 14-1 on the year and 3-1 in the University Athletic Association (UAA) while the Yellowjackets drop to 11-4 and 2-2.

Senior Lisa Murphy (McLean, Va./McLean) led all scorers with 26 points, 16 of which came from the free throw line, and grabbed 13 rebounds for her ninth straight double-double. She also collected five blocks. Senior Jackie Hudepohl (Saratoga, Calif./Lynbrook (Colgate)) filled the stat sheet with 13 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists while freshman Makayla Filiere (Chandler, Ariz./Hamilton) scored 16 points for her sixth straight game in double figures.

Carnegie Mellon jumped out to a 9-2 lead behind two fastbreak layups by freshman Dominique Petach (Pittsburgh, Pa./Norwin) following her own steals. Rochester answered with an 8-0 run to take its first lead of the game, 10-9, with four minutes to play in the quarter.

A three-pointer by freshman Laurel Pereira (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North) gave the Tartans a 19-11 advantage before the quarter ended with the Tartans ahead 19-13.

Murphy's first bucket of the game put the Tartans ahead 23-13 less than two minutes into the second quarter. A three-pointer by Brenna James a minute later started a 14-5 run that pulled the Yellowjackets to within one point with 3:52 to go before halftime.

The Tartans continued to hold the lead going up by five on Murphy's 11th free throw of the game before the Yellowjackets closed the final minute on a 7-0 run to take a 35-33 lead at the half. James scored the last five points for Rochester including a three-pointer at the second-quarter buzzer.

The game continued to be a back-and-forth affair with five lead changes in the third period. The Tartans held a three-point advantage going into the final 10 minutes after Filiere hit from behind the arc off a feed from Murphy.

A 12-5 run for the Tartans pushed the home team's advantage to 10 points with 4:54 to play.

With 2:22 to play and the Tartans holding a 60-50 lead, Murphy was fouled following an offensive rebound. She connected on both attempts from the free throw line and the Tartans went on to make the next 9-of-10 from the line the remainder of the game to seal the win.

The Tartans finished shooting 35.7% for the game after hitting 39.3% in the second half. The Yellowjackets, who were led by Alexandra Leslie's 25 points and 10 rebounds, shot 34.3% for the game but just 20.8% from behind the arc.

Carnegie Mellon will next play host to Emory University (11-4, 2-2), winners at Case Western Reserve Friday night, on Sunday, January 22 at 2:00 p.m.