MILLERSVILLE, Pa. — Morgan Mahoney connected on a layup as the fourth-quarter buzzer sounded to net her game-high 17^th point but it wasn't enough as the Millersville Marauders fell 63-62 to the red-hot No. 11 Seton Hill Griffins. In a season already filled with multiple overtime games and chaotic end-of-game situations, this contest with its 51 combined team fouls and 54 free throws may top the list.

Millersville entered the final 11.9 seconds needing a three to tie it with the score 63-60, but the play head coach Kira Mowen drew up out of the timeout fell flat; after running the play, a Griffin defender tipped a pass out of bounds to give the Marauders a chance with just 1.9 remaining. Out of that stoppage, the ball went to Mahoney inside the three-point line.

"Honestly, the team fought hard. This one is on me," Mowen said of the final moments postgame. "End of game situation, we need to have a better play call. The play call actually changed a couple times, but I think it was about me not communicating well what exactly I was looking for (on the last shot). I was looking for a three on that play and it just wasn't relayed properly."

A wild finish was to be expected in a clash between one of the most potent offenses in the country and one of the stoutest defenses in the country. The Griffins entered the game ranked second in the country by points per game (88.9) and sixth in field goal percentage (48.49%) while the Marauders have held teams to just 32.4% from the field, which is good for ninth-best. Something had to give, and it would be the Griffins' offense to start; Millersville scored the game's first 12 points and kept the visitors off of the scoreboard until the 5:20 mark of the first quarter. The first Seton Hill basket came with 3:33 to go in the period and it was a minute later that the momentum swiftly changed hands.

It had been a physical contest to that point, but just three fouls had been called on Millersville. In stark contrast, the Marauders committed 19 fouls over the final 12:38 of the first half, leading to 24 Griffin free throw attempts. Many of those were of the offensive variety and led to the nine turnovers the team had during that stretch. It all amounted to a +11 Griffin advantage over those 12 minutes but Millersville entered the half down just two. Nine players had two or more fouls at the game's midway point, complicating Mowen's rotation and substitutions.
 
"We didn't have anybody foul out, so we handled it well in the second half," Mowen said of her team's foul trouble. "But it's a mindset then that I've got to get my players out of foul trouble going into half that they're in. And then we can only use certain rotations because you're trying to cycle through the ones with three, four fouls, and that can prevent us from getting into a good rhythm."
 
Despite the second-quarter adversity, the Marauder defense had arguably its best showing of the season; they held the second-most prolific offense in Division II to just 31.7% from the field and 25 points short of their scoring average. The effect the physical defensive effort had on the Griffins could be seen most in the line of Helene Cowan, who entered the game averaging 16.1 points per game. Millersville held her in check with a 3-for-16 day from the field and just 11 points, her second lowest total of the season.
 
"I thought we stopped their transition for the most part outside of a few easy layups," Mowen said of the team's fastbreak defense.  "They shoot threes, they score layups-that's their game. So, locking down and rotating on the help side were things that we really focused heavily on this week."
 
Four Marauders reached double figures in scoring including Mahoney's season-high 17 points. Makiah Shaw had 12 on just six shots while Rhyan Mitchell set a career-high with 12 of her own. Point guard Kali March, who was among the Marauders limited by foul trouble, played a season-low 24 minutes and had 11 points. Sophia Elstone was held scoreless but had five offensive rebounds and five defensive boards totaling a game-high 10 rebounds.

The Marauders return to action tomorrow, Dec. 7 at 1 p.m. against the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown.