BLOOMFIELD, N.J. - A basket by Alexis Sweeney as time expired allowed Bloomfield College to defeat Caldwell College, 67-66 in a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference women's basketball game Tuesday evening at the Bloomfield Gymnasium. The result extends the Cougars' losing streak to three games and drops their record to 9-15, including 7-7 in conference play. The Lady Deacons improve to 13-11, 10-5 CACC.
Bloomfield held the lead for the first part of the first half, until the Cougars went on an 11-2 run to take a 20-17 advantage with 6:20 on the clock. Caldwell held the upper hand the rest of the period, using four points apiece from senior forward Mackenzie Lynch (Wayne, NJ/DePaul Catholic) and freshman guard Kaitlyn Lambert (Cumberland, RI/Cumberland) to build a 35-29 lead at halftime. Lynch notched a double-double in the first half alone with 10 points and 10 rebounds, while Lambert led Caldwell in scoring in the half with 11 points.
Momentum stayed with the visitors early in the second half, as the Cougars rode a 13-4 spree to their largest lead of the game, 48-33 with just over 17 minutes to play. But the Lady Deacons answered with a 10-2 run of their own to cut Caldwell's lead to five, 50-45 with 12:18 on the clock. Bloomfield came within one point later in the half, but the Cougars stayed on top and built the lead back up to six points, 66-60 at the two-minute mark. A conventional three-point play by Vanessa Lamison and two free throws from Robyn Burton made the score 66-65 with one minute remaining.
After Caldwell turned the ball over on its next possession, Lynch and senior forward Janay Perkins (Bronx, NY/Walton) each blocked Bloomfield's shots, but the Lady Deacons retained possession. With time running down, Sweeney hit a jumper in the paint for the win and a sweep of the season series. The Cougars made 11-of-17 of their field goal attempts in the second half, but turned the ball over 13 times and allowed eight Bloomfield offensive rebounds after halftime that resulted in 10 second-chance points.
Lynch led all scorers with 21 points to go with 11 rebounds for her 13th double-double of the season. Lambert added 18 points and eight rebounds while going 7-of-8 from the floor. Lamison finished with 18 points for Bloomfield, while Tiffany McDaniel recorded 10 points and 11 boards.
Next up for Caldwell is a conference game at Wilmington University on Saturday, Feb. 21. The game is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m. in New Castle, Del.
