The St. Lawrence University women's basketball team suffered its first Liberty League loss of the season on Saturday afternoon in Poughkeepsie, NY as Vassar rallied from six points down at halftime for a 65-60 victory on its home court. Junior Kara McDuffee had a double-double for St. Lawrence, while Hannah Senftleber led the way for the Brewers with a game-high 26 points.

St. Lawrence (8-6, 4-1) was up 31-25 at intermission, but struggled from the field in the second half, shooting only 29% from the floor including a 3-for-17 mark from behind the arc. McDuffee finished with 13 points and 13 rebounds, while Kelly Legg (14 points) and Cassie St. Hilaire (12) each scored in double-figures.

Vassar improves to 13-3 (6-1) thanks to a 46-39 rebounding advantage and an excellent outing from Cydni Matsuoka, who was only three assists shy of a triple-double (21 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists).

"We just couldn't finish all game. We had chances early to put the game away but we had a large number of mental breakdowns that allowed Vassar to hang with us," said St. Lawrence head coach Dan Roiger. "In the last few minutes when we went ice cold, those plays came back to haunt us. We have no time to feel bad, as we need to flip the page and get ready for Skidmore."

St. Lawrence got off to a great start on Saturday, as hot shooting allowed them to take a 10 point lead 8:00 minutes into the game, capped by a three pointer from rookie Caroline Dalton. Though Vassar would chip away at the lead and pull to within one at 20-19, McDuffee hit back-to-back threes, and Legg added another three in the final seconds of the half for the six point cushion at the break.

Each time Vassar made a push early in the second half, St. Lawrence would respond with a three pointer to keep separation. Both Allison Cady and St. Hilaire connected from behind the arc to help end a mini run from the Brewers. Though St. Lawrence led 57-55 with 5:16 to play, Vassar continued to push and finally pulled even at 55-55 with 6:04 remaining in the game before Nyah Berg put the Brewers ahead for the first time seconds later with a lay-in, forcing a St. Lawrence timeout.

The Saints continued to struggle offensively in the final minutes, finishing 1-for-6 from the field down the stretch while Vassar extended its lead, completing the rally for the 65-60 victory.

Senftleber scored 18 points in the second half, as she and Matsuoka combined for 31 to help Vassar to the win.

St. Lawrence will look to regroup on Tuesday, January 28 when it visits Skidmore for a conference contest at 6:00pm in Saratoga Springs, NY.