WEST POINT, N.Y. – Three weeks after an exhilarating one-point game in Annapolis that saw Navy come out on top, Army evened the season series on Saturday afternoon with an equally exhilarating 70-66 decision. Playing before a national television audience on CBS Sports Network, as well as a packed and boisterous Christl Arena on Army's campus, the Mids (7-16, 4-9 PL) fought for 40 minutes and had a lead with two and a half minutes to go before the Black Knights (13-10, 7-6 PL) closed on an 8-2 run to claim the 2022 Star for women's basketball. The contest was part of the 2021-22 Star Series presented by USAA.
 
Playing in her final Star game, Jennifer Coleman (Sr., Richmond, Va.) had a hand in all aspects of Navy's effort on Saturday as she finished with 24 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, while never leaving the court. The junior duo of Lindsay Llewellyn (North East, Md.) and Mimi Schrader (Plymouth, Minn.) joined Coleman in double figures as Llewellyn recorded 13 points in 40 minutes of action with Schrader adding 10.
 
"That's a tough loss," remarked head coach Tim Taylor. "I loved our effort today, I'm proud of our kids. We came into a hostile environment, played hard and went toe-to-toe with Army. That was a great atmosphere for a college basketball game. Hats off to Army, they won a really fun and competitive game. That's why you come and play at a service academy, to compete in these type of games. It's heart wrenching for the team that loses and exhilarating for the one that comes out on top.
 
"Our big focus coming into the game was keeping them [Army] off the glass and you look at the stats; we did a good job with that. When they shoot 13-of-27 from three-point range with one that was even banked in; that's tough, that's really tough. We had to do a better job of identifying shooters and I think that was the one thing that cost us today and especially in the fourth quarter. We weren't getting out to them quick enough; they had too much space. They made big shots when they needed to."
 
In an explosive first five minutes of action, Navy was hitting on all cylinders as the Mids opened 5-of-6 from the field to go up 12-11 by the 5:44 mark. Coleman was the early sparkplug with seven of her team's points. As quick as they started the Mids' offense soon went on a four-plus minute scoring drought and saw the Black Knights net the next four points to go ahead 15-12. A trio of successful free throws by Schrader and Coleman closed out Navy's scoring for the quarter.
 
Bolstered by a 9-3 run to end the first quarter ahead 20-15, Army added six early points over the initial 1:42 of the second period to go up 11, 26-15. The Mids broke into the scoring column at the 6:21 mark when Coleman found Morganne Andrews (So., Martinsburg, W.Va.) deep in the post for an easy layup. Ensuing three-pointers by Schrader and Llewellyn drew Navy within three, 26-23 by 4:23. Army quickly responded to this threat with a 5-0 run of its own to go back ahead by eight. From that juncture at 3:29, the Mids closed out the half with nine of the final 11 points to make it a 33-32 contest in Army's favor. Coleman led that charge with seven of Navy's points.
 
The ultra-tight and competitive action continued in the second half as there were three lead changes and two ties, at 36 and 38 over the first 3:09. Ciera Hertelendy (Sr., Inwood, W.Va.) gave Navy its first lead of the half after grabbing a physical offensive rebound and nailing the putback layup at 9:29. With the score tied 38-38 at 6:51, the teams went nearly silent for the next three-plus minutes as the host Black Knights made just one three-pointer, while the Mids responded with a single made goal. Following a pair of free throws that put Navy behind 43-40, Coleman drove the lane and hit a wide-open Llewellyn on the wing for a game-tying three-pointer at 3:22. That basket sparked the Mids down the stretch as the visitors burst open a six-point lead with an 11-5 run. Llewellyn and Coleman did the heavy lifting for Navy with nine combined points.
 
Ahead 54-48 after three quarters of play, the Mids added a quick Andrews layup on their first possession to go up by a team-high eight points. Invigorated by its loud fan base within Christl Arena, Army scored nine of the next 10 points between 8:23 and 4:59 to re-tie the game at 57-57. Navy found its scoring touch over the next two possessions as Coleman dribbled into and out of congestion and kicked out to Schrader in the near corner for a three-pointer and then a lengthy two-pointer. With the score 62-59 at 3:35, Army fought Navy to even scores of 62-62 and 64-64 over the next two minutes. The Black Knights took their final lead of the contest with 1:29 remaining as Kate Murray hit her third three-pointer of the quarter. Down 67-64, an exciting and athletic individual effort, a steal and fast break layup, by Darryl Langford (Sr., Fayetteville, Ga.) helped net the Mids' final basket with 27 seconds left in regulation. A 3-of-4 showing at the foul line by Army in the closing 18 seconds made it a 70-66 final score.
 
For the game, Army outshot Navy from the field, 45.1 percent (23-51) to 43.9 (25-57) from the field and 48.1 percent (13-27) to 41.2 (7-17) from three-point range. The Mids held a slight 81.8 percent (9-11) to 73.3 (11-15) advantage in foul shooting.
 
In the battle on the glass, the host Black Knights grabbed four more rebounds, 33-29. The offensive rebounding totals were also close as Army finished with 11 versus 10 for Navy. Coleman finished with a game-high 10 boards. Saturday's double-double is the 18th of the season for Coleman.
 
The Mids had a positive assist-to-turnover ratio on Saturday as they tallied 13 assists, while only turning the ball over just 10 times. Coleman also led all players in this category as she was credited with eight helpers.
 
"Jenn is starting to learn to make the right play," said Taylor. "In year's past, she might have forced a shot, but now she's recognizing what teams are throwing at her and she's dissecting the plays correctly. Army was loading up on her and she did a really nice job of finding her open teammates. Jenn was phenomenal today. I told her pregame that great players show up in the big games and she really was today!"
 
Defensively, Navy registered seven steals.
 
The Mids will continue Patriot League action at home on Wednesday when they welcome the Eagles of American University with a 7 p.m. contest.