WASHINGTON, D.C. – Finding itself in a one-possession game deep into the fourth quarter, the Navy women's basketball team was unable to slow an American University squad that shot 90.0 percent in the fourth quarter and fell on the road by a score of 69-60. Down 59-58 with two and a half minutes to play, the Mids (6-14, 3-7 PL) couldn't pull out the victory over the Eagles (12-6, 5-3 PL) at Bender Arena on Saturday afternoon in the nation's capital.
 
Sydne Watts (So., Canton, Ga.) and Jennifer Coleman (Sr., Richmond, Va.) led Navy's individual efforts against American as the pair combined for 39 points. Watts finished with 20 points, while Coleman was right behind with 19 points. The senior guard completed her 15th double-double of the season with 10 rebounds. She added six assists and four steals.
 
"American made some plays at the end and were very efficient in the fourth quarter," remarked head coach Tim Taylor. "We just couldn't get stops when we needed to down the stretch. They had a couple of shots that rattled around and still found a way to make it in. When you're playing well you get those breaks.
 
"I thought our team battled. It was a one-possession game late, but we just didn't get the stop when we needed it. I thought we executed our game plan for the most part. Hats off to American, they came in averaging a little over three three-pointers a game and in the story of our season, they connected on eight today. Seems like it's been happening pretty regularly."
 
Navy opened the action on Saturday with strong offensive output as the Mids netted eight of the first 10 points by the 5:52 mark. Lindsay Llewellyn (Jr., North East, Md.), Watts and Coleman all registered baskets during this stretch to bolster Navy's cause. After an American field goal the next time down the court, Watts increased her team's lead to seven points with a three-pointer from the wing at 5:13. Following a lull in the action where the Eagles scored the only two points in a run of nearly three minutes, Coleman tried her hand from long range as she swished home a trey to make it a 14-6 game at 2:27. American tightened the contest down the stretch as the period closed with a 16-11 score.
 
The game stayed at that five-point margin for the initial five minutes of the second quarter as each team converted two baskets. A steal and fast break layup by Coleman at 4:54 gave Navy a seven-point lead of 22-15. The Mids and Eagles traded three-pointer makes on the ensuing two possessions with Riley DeRubbo hitting from distance for American before Mimi Schrader (Jr., Plymouth, Minn.) matched her for Navy. The Mids recorded their third straight basket, a Coleman layup, to go up nine, 27-18 at 3:55. The Eagles clawed their way back and drew within two courtesy of a 7-0 run going down to 1:36. Another steal and breakaway by Coleman helped Navy end that streak and take a four-point advantage into the halftime intermission.
 
The close competition persisted into the second half as the Mids slowly built its lead out to five points over the first 2:11. Watts capped that portion of the action with a three-pointer from the top of the arc. A 6-0 run by the Eagles flipped the scoreboard into the favor of the hosts at a 35-34 margin by 5:23. Another basket by Watts allowed Navy to re-take the lead the next time down the court. The back-and-forth play continued as the two teams jockeyed for the lead on the scoreboard over the next three-plus minutes. Tied 40-40 at 1:42, American scored five of the last six points to take a 45-41 lead through 30 minutes of action.
 
The Mids continued fighting and nearly pulled even with the Eagles when Coleman went three-for-three at the foul line at 8:51 to make it 47-46. The visitors eventually succeeded in that task and tied the Eagles at 53-53 following a Coleman layup at 5:42. The game was tied for a fifth time less than a minute later as both teams made baskets in their respective possessions. After a brief 4-0 run by American, Watts reached the 20-point plateau as she made a jumper and converted an 'and-one' free throw. With the score 59-58 at 2:38, the Eagles locked up the hard-fought victory with a 10-2 run to close the game. On its way to the nine-point victory, American shot 90.0 percent (9-10) from the field and 75.0 percent (3-4) at the foul line in the final period of play.
 
For the game, American outshot Navy, 49.0 percent (25-51) to 42.6 (23-54) from the field and 38.1 percent (8-21) to 22.2 (4-18) from three-point range. The Mids finished with a slight 83.3 percent (10-12) to 73.3 (11-15) edge in free throw shooting.
 
The rebounding battle was nearly equal as Navy grabbed one more carom than American, 30-29. The Mids were credited with nine offensive boards versus six for the Eagles. Playing all 40 minutes of action on Saturday, Coleman snatched a game-high 10 rebounds.
 
Defensively, Navy forced American into 13 turnovers and were credited with nine steals. Coleman and Hertelendy led the way as the senior duo combined for seven thefts, four for Coleman and three for Hertelendy.
 
"I thought we had good effort from everyone," said Taylor in closing. "It was tough playing with a rotation of pretty much six players today. We just have to keep getting better and making plays. I feel like we're close. I feel like we're in every game, outside of one or two of them. We're a couple plays away in every game. We just need to learn how to finish those."
 
The Mids will be away from action for a week as the Patriot League has its annual mid-week bye, though due to numerous cancellations in the first half of the conference slate most teams will be playing make-up games. Navy's next contest will be at home on Saturday, February 5 when the Mids host the Loyola Greyhounds at 4 p.m. in Alumni Hall.