ALFRED, NY – The Alfred University women's basketball team dropped a close contest to Penn State Altoona by a score of 67-62 on Friday.
 
Prior to the game, the Saxons (4-1, 0-0 Empire 8) celebrated Faculty & Staff Appreciation Night. Members of the team honored specific mentors of theirs for their ongoing success off the court.
 
Jaidyn Chest (Mayfield, NY/Mayfield) recorded her second 20+ point performance of the season. She led all scorers with a season-high 22 points on 8-of-20 shooting. Chest also added seven rebounds and four assists to her stat line.
 
Jayda L. Felker (Corning, NY/Corning-Painted Post) registered 10 points on 3-of-11 from the field and 4-of-5 at the free throw line. She notched seven rebounds and dished out a career-high nine assists.
 
AU came out strong, shooting 47% (8-17) in the first quarter to take a 20-10 lead. The momentum continued into the second quarter, where the Saxons built their largest lead of 20 at the 5:45 mark, 34-14. Chest had nine of those points during the stretch. Meanwhile, Penn State Altoona (3-2, 0-0 AMCC) responded with a 21-4 run to cut the deficit within five. The Saxons maintained the lead at halftime, 40-35, despite the Nittany Lions having the 25-20 scoring advantage in the second.
 
The momentum shifted dramatically in the third quarter. AU's offense struggled, producing only eight points while Penn State Altoona scored 15 to take a two-point lead, 50-48.
 
In the fourth quarter, Felker and Chest combined for 14 points to keep the Saxons' comeback hopes alive. However, it was not enough, as the Nittany Lions shot 40% (6-15) overall compared to AU's 21% (4-19).
 
AU shot 36.2% (25-69) overall, while Penn State Altoona posted 38% (27-71). The Nittany Lions led with 6-of-16 (.375) at the 3-point line. The Saxons led with 8-of-12 (.667) at the charity stripe.
 
AU won the battle for points in the paint, 38-32, and had 13 points on 11 turnovers by Penn State Altoona. The Nittany Lions registered 18 points on 19 offensive rebounds. 
 
"Tonight was a tough one," Head Coach Mike Moskowitz said. "We played some really good basketball the first 15 minutes of the game and got out to a big lead. We then had a really bad five-minute stretch that affected the flow of the rest of the game. Our mental lapses across the board really hurt us on both ends, and those missed opportunities to get a stop or execute a set cost us. Credit to Altoona as they really did a nice job grinding out a tough win."
 
The Saxons play one more game before the Thanksgiving break at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford on Tuesday at 5:30 PM.