BOSTON, Mass. – The Wheaton College (Mass.) women's basketball team was unable to hold off host Suffolk University this evening in a 90-85 loss in double-overtime at Smith Court in Boston, Mass.

The Lyons dip to 1-4 on the season, while the Rams improve to 4-1.

Suffolk proved to be resilient every time Wheaton looked like it was ready to put the game away. The Rams erased a 12-point deficit with six minutes to play in the fourth quarter, a four-point margin with 2:02 to play in the first overtime and a two-point difference with 4:04 to go in the second overtime period.

The Lyons shot 37.0% (27-73) for the game, including 43.1 (8-19) from three-point range and were 23 of 36 (63.9) from the free throw line, including a combined 9-18 in the fourth quarter and both overtime periods. Suffolk owned a 43.6% (34-78) shooting clip for the night, despite hitting just 26.3% (5-19) of its three-point tries. The Rams were 4-5 from the line in the fourth quarter and both overtime periods combined as part of a 17-23 (73.9%) effort for the game.

Senior guard Abby Fernandes (Assonet, Mass.) finished with 19 points as one of four Wheaton players with double-digits. She was 9-12 from the line and added seven rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block, while junior guard Kennis Jasperson (Sacramento, Calif.) netted 15 points, including four three-pointers, and added two assists and a steal. Junior guard Kiki Walters (Fleetwood, Pa.) tallied 14 points to go with seven rebounds, five assists and a game-high six steals and junior forward Regan Keyter (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) contributed with 12 points, eight boards, two assists and a steal.

Graduate student forward Amanda DeAngelis (Londonderry, N.H.) posted a double-double with game-highs of 21 points and 10 rebounds in addition to three steals and a block to lead Suffolk. Junior guard Colby Guinta (Manchester, N.H.) chipped in with 14 points, two rebounds and a pair of assists and first year forward Tatiana Tune (Wyantskill, N.Y.) was 6-9 from the field to score 14 points in 21 minutes off the bench and added three assists and three steals. Sophomore guard Olivia Verdile (Ballston Spa, N.Y.) was one of five players in double-digit scoring for the Rams and finished with 12 points, one assist and a steal.

Sophomore forward Cheyenne Colbert (Brookline, N.H.) converted back-to-back layups to give the Lyons their largest lead of the evening at 66-54 with 6:00 to play in the game. 

Suffolk's defense held Wheaton without a field goal in the final six minutes, while Wheaton turned the ball over five times. The Rams scored eight unanswered points and held the Lyons scoreless for a span of 5:39 before Jasperson converted one of two free throws to give Wheaton a 67-62 lead. Suffolk scored the final five points of the game, including a lay-up from Tune with two seconds left in regulation. She was fouled on the play to put her on the line for one shot that she sank to send the game into overtime at 67-67.

Verdile gave the home team a 71-69 margin with 3:47 to play in the first overtime, but the Lyons scored seven of the next eight points, capped by a layup from sophomore guard Mary McClintock (Essex Junction, Vt.), to give them a 76-72 lead with 2:02 remaining in the overtime. 

Junior forward Nasha Arnold (North Reading, Mass.) later maintained Wheaton's lead with a free throw to make it 79-77 with :06 to go in the period, but sophomore guard Claire Berkowitz (Blauvelt, N.Y.) converted a layup with no time left on the clock for the Rams to send the marathon into a second overtime period. 

McClintock made another layup for the Lyons to give them an 83-81 margin with 4:04 left in the game, but it was their last lead of the night. Verdile netted the next five points to put Suffolk in front for good at 86-83 with 3:06 showing on the clock. Fernandes sank a free throw to pull Wheaton within a point at 86-85 with 58 ticks left, before the Rams put the game away with the final four points.

DeAngelis knocked down a jumper early in the opening quarter to cut the deficit to 9-8 with 7:05 to play for Suffolk. The Lyons put together an 11-2 run, capped by a trifecta from senior guard Greta Minos (Boston, Mass.) to give the visitors a 19-11 cushion with 4:28 showing. Tune netted four points to spark seven straight for the Rams to close within 19-18 at the 2:20 mark. Wheaton countered with the next five points to take a 24-18 margin, before a layup from Berkowitz made it 24-20 to close the quarter.

Arnold potted a free throw just 48 seconds into the second quarter to bump the Lyons' lead to five, before Suffolk ripped off seven points in a row to claim a 27-25 lead with 7:29 to go in the quarter. The teams traded the lead before the end of the half concluded with senior guard Maddie Stewart (Conway, N.Y.) scoring the final four points to snap a tie and give the Rams a 42-38 lead heading into the break.

A layup from sophomore guard Allison Bond (Chester, N.Y.) reclaimed Suffolk's edge at 46-45 with 6:31 left in the third quarter, before Wheaton put together a 13-4 burst, paced by five points from Jasperson, to take a 58-50 cushion with 1:14 showing in the third quarter. Verdile rattled home a jumper with 47 ticks left in the period to make it a six-point game for the Rams heading into the fourth quarter of play. 

The Lyons began the quarter with an 8-2 run to give them a 66-54 lead with six minutes remaining in the quarter.

Wheaton returns to the court on Saturday, November 23 when it hosts Bowdoin College at Emerson Gymnasium for a 2:00 p.m. tip-off, while Suffolk travels to Nashua, N.H. on the same day to take on Rivier University at 1:00 p.m.