BOX SCORE

Center Valley, Pa. (Jan. 10, 2009) - Sophomore Kelli McIntyre (Orwigsburg, Pa./Blue Mountain) loves the big stage.

In just her second season at Alvernia she proved it again on Saturday scoring a career-high 30 points to lead the Crusaders (6-5, 3-2) to a 68-66 win over #12 DeSales University (9-2, 4-1) in Freedom Conference women's basketbal action at Billera Hall, a place the Bulldogs had won 21 straight.

DeSales, ranked ninth in the d3hoops.com preseason poll, had a shot to tie the game on Saturday but Megan Bedard (Limerick, Pa./Spring Ford) was off the mark and the horn sounded before the Bulldogs could get off another shot.

DeSales led for most of the game until Alvernia put together a 10-0 run over a six-minute stretch late in the second half.  Down 61-57 with eight minutes to play Alvernia got a free throw each from Joanna Graber (Manalapan, N.J./Notre Dame) and Alex Velazquez (Lancaster, Pa./Manheim Township).  The Crusaders forged the second tie of the half moments later when McIntyre scored at 5:43 assisted by freshman CeCe Buzzard (Willow Street, Pa./Solanco) who finished with a career-high six helpers.

Buzzard, who also finished with half a dozen points, followed with back-to-back jumpers as Alvernia built the lead to four with 4:43 to go and then six, 67-61 when McIntyre nailed a jumper at 2:27.

Neither team scored on their next possession and with the clock under 90 seconds DeSales senior Kim Rarick (Ringtown, Pa./North Schuylkill) stopped an 0-for-9 Bulldog streak with a huge 3 from the top of the key that cut the Crusaders' lead in half.

Graber, who entered the game shooting 82 percent from the free throw line, then hit 1-of-2 from the stripe to push it back to a two-possession game.  The Crusaders got the ball back, up four, when a jumper from LeighAnn Burke(Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Ryan), who paced the Bulldogs with 17, bounced out of bounds.

The Bulldogs, who pride themselves on their pressure and forcing turnovers, got one in a pivotal spot when Graber turned it over the Burke with 36 ticks to go.  Burke turned it into points immediately with a layup on the break.

With the shot clock off and facing a two-point deficit the Bulldogs played defense for 20 seconds looking for the steal, but couldn't get it and needed to send Graber back to the line with 13 seconds to play.  The decision paid off as Graber was long on the front end of the 1-and-1, but the hosts couldn't convert at the other end as the horn sounded on the Bulldogs' first conference loss of the season.

Velazquez joined McIntyre in double figures with 13 and grabbed 10 boards for her fourth double-double of the season, and freshman Allison Toczylowski (Mantua, N.J./Clearview Regional) scored a dozen going 6-of-10 from the floor.  Rarick finished with 14 for the Bulldogs to join Burke in double figures.

A season ago in her freshman campaign McIntyre, the younger sister of Erin McIntyre who is sixth in career scoring at Alvernia with 1,165 points, averaged 22.5 points in two games against then arch rival Gwynedd-Mercy College. 

A 30-point outburst including four 3s, and more importantly a big road win, is a great start as the Crusaders seek a different rival among their new conference foes.

Alvernia is back in action Wednesday when it hosts FDU-Florham for a conference doubleheader.

Alvernia 68, DeSales 66