On Tuesday, January 22, the lady Lyndon Hornets hosted their first basketball game of the semester against the Fisher College Falcons. After a long winter break, the Hornets’ record stood at 9-7 and the Falcons’ at 13-8. After a grueling hour and a half, the non-conference game was turned over to Fisher College by a score of 54-63.
The first basket of the game was a 3-pointer made by Fisher senior Jocelyn Mendoza (33) but was quickly followed up by a layup from Lyndon junior Alissa Mitchell (11). This pattern continued through the first quarter, each team scoring a basket after the other. Lyndon, however, was able to take the lead with quick passes, 17-16. One fan recalled that the ball seemed to just skip by people and hop into the net by itself.
Once the second quarter began, Lyndon freshman Lauren Young (1) made a 2-point basket. Followed by many successful foul shots in favor of the Hornets and a handful of 3-pointers by the Falcons, the score settled at 32-31 for halftime. At this point, Lyndon had used two of their timeouts to motivate the team and keep their lead throughout the second quarter.
Lyndon sophomore Faith Poirier (5) scored the first points of the second half, running the ball across most of the court by herself and landing a 2-point basket. Another epic Hornet moment was witnessed when sophomore Alisha Celley (24) scored another 2-point basket with one second remaining of control–see cover image. During these baskets, however, the Fisher Falcons would follow closely with their own baskets and foul shots. The teams kept tying up the score throughout the third quarter and even had full minutes of no baskets due to strong defenses. However, after rallying together with two timeouts, the Falcons took the lead, 42-49.
As the final ten minutes of the game began, Lyndon junior Rylee Moore (21) and Lyndon freshman Tayler Courchesne (15) shortened the falcon lead, bringing the score to 47-52. As Falcon junior Vivian Lara (24) took control of the final minute, the Lyndon Hornets still refused to give up. Their defense remained strong and they prevented any baskets from being made for the last thirty seconds. The game ended in favor of the visiting Fisher Falcons with a score of 54-63.
Overall, it was Lyndon freshman Lea Crompton (32) who scored the most points for her home team. She made one 3-point basket, five 2-point baskets, and five out of seven foul shots, earning 18 points for the Hornets, one-third of Lyndon’s total point score. Lyndon junior Alissa Mitchell (11) lead the team with the most rebounds of the game—14.
An alum of the Lyndon basketball program was caught saying that Crompton (32), “has a good chance at becoming Rookie of the Year this year.” Crompton and the other Hornets can be seen on their home court again this coming Friday, January 25, at 7:30 against University of Maine – Presque Isle. This game will be a North Atlantic Conference matchup. We look forward to seeing you there, cheering on our Hornets!