LEWISBURG, Pa. – Playing its third game in five days, an undermanned Navy women's basketball team was never really able to find its legs or shooting stroke and fell on the road in the Patriot League Semifinals to Bucknell on Wednesday night by a score of 64-44. Taking on the fourth-seeded Bison (23-8) on their home court at Sojka Pavilion, the eighth-seeded Mids (10-21) were held to just seven points in each of the first and third quarters, while the hosts connected on 70.0 percent of their shots in the second period.
 
Jennifer Coleman (Richmond, Va.) completed her standout career and stellar senior season with her 23rd game with 20 or more points of the year as she netted 27 over 40 minutes of action. Additionally, the All-Patriot League First Team performer grabbed eight rebounds and three steals, while assisting on two made baskets. Lindsay Llewellyn (Jr., North East, Md.) was the second-highest scorer on Wednesday night as she finished with five points and four rebounds.
 
"Bucknell played at a championship level tonight," remarked head coach Tim Taylor. "Hats off to them. Taylor O'Brien showed why she was All-Patriot League First Team selection. They came out with a lot of energy and responded to a really great, home atmosphere. It was loud. Hats off to Trevor [Woodruff] and his program. They really had everything working tonight.
 
"It really hurt not having Kristina Donza tonight. She plays an important role in what we do. We didn't have that extra guard so we were playing a lot of people out of position and having them play in spots that they haven't played in a long time. We had three bigs out there at points throughout the game. That's not an excuse, we just weren't able to make the necessary adjustments. I'm proud of our fight, regardless of the obstacles in our way, we battled the entire game."
 
The action began with a significant Bucknell edge as the hosts jumped out to a 10-4 lead by the 5:01 mark on the strength of a pair of successful three-pointers. Coleman connected for her second field goal of the first quarter at 3:34 to draw the Mids within four points, 10-6. The Bison closed the period by scoring four of the final five points to take a 14-7 lead into the quarter break.
 
Another three-pointer by Bucknell helped the Bison break open a double-digit lead before the duo of Sydne Watts (So., Canton, Ga.) and Coleman went back-to-back with consecutive jumpers at 8:31 and 7:54. Navy's offense kept up with Bucknell over the next two minutes on the strength of two field goals by Mimi Schrader (Jr., Plymouth, Minn.). With the score 22-15 at 6:01, each team netted four points over the next 2:38. From the 3:23 mark when it was 26-19, the Bison concluded the second stanza on a 10-0 run to go into the locker room up 36-19.
 
Bucknell stretched that scoring streak out to 20 unanswered points and grew its lead out to 27, 46-19 by 6:20. A three-pointer from the corner by Llewellyn at 4:50 helped Navy end its eight-plus minute scoring drought. Unfortunately, that was the lone three-pointer of the game for the Mids. Navy was unable to get its offense on track for the rest of the third quarter as Coleman netted her squad's only two remaining field goals.
 
Down 51-26 through three quarters of play, the Mids showed the 'no quit' spirit that's steered them throughout the season and opened the fourth on a 6-1 run over the first three minutes. Ciera Hertelendy (Sr., Inwood, W.Va.) scored Navy's first two points before Coleman registered the next four. With the score, 52-32, Coleman continued her breakneck scoring pace and netted four more points over the next two possessions to keep the margin at 20. Over the final five minutes, the Mids stayed in step with the Bison and completed the contest with a score of 64-44. In their final collegiate games, the senior trio of Coleman, Hertelendy and Darryl Langford (Fayetteville, Ga.) combined to register all of Navy's 18 points in the fourth quarter. Coleman shot 5-of-9 in the fourth quarter and 4-of-4 at the foul line to score 14 of those points.
 
"When we took over this program two years ago, we wanted to establish a culture that we'll never quit and play for 40 minutes regardless of the score," said Taylor. "I felt like we did that tonight. I felt that C.C., Darryl and Jenn all bought into that and led that way as seniors. So many teams could've quit when you're struggling to get wins. We faced a lot of adversity this year losing Imani and Kolbi in the first half of the year and with the way we lost games in last-minute fashion. This team never folded. When we left the locker room tonight everyone was really sad. I think in a lot of ways, that says a lot about our seniors, our coaching staff and where our program is at. We were able to stay together and fight to the end. We didn't want this ride to end."
 
For the game, Bucknell outshot Navy, 40.7 percent (22-54) to 29.8 (17-57) from the field, 36.8 percent (7-19) to 11.1 (1-9) from three-point range and 92.9 percent (13-14) to 64.3 (9-14).
 
The Bison also held considerable advantages in the battle on the glass as the hosts out-rebounded the Mids, 45-28. Coleman led Navy with eight rebounds, four on offense and another four on defense. She finished the season holding records for the most defensive rebounds in program history (269) and the most total rebounds (333). Her mark for total rebounds is the ninth-most by a Patriot League player in a single-season.
 
Defensively, Navy forced Bucknell into 17 turnovers and were credited with nine steals. Coleman and Langford each registered three steals. Coleman's 86 steals this season rank number three all-time in the Navy women's basketball record book.
 
For her scoring prowess, Coleman's 689 points this year shattered the program's previous single-season mark of 530 set by Courtney Davidson in 2002-03. In the Patriot League's record books, she finished the year in seventh place. Her 22.23 points per game scoring average is most ever by a Midshipmen player. Only four players in program history have ever eclipsed the 20-point plateau in a single-season.

"I'm so grateful for our senior class," remarked Taylor when asked about his seniors. "C.C. is one of the most selfless teammates that I've ever been associated with. She had a great offseason and was primed for so many good things, but then she got injured and missed the whole preseason and has been battling nagging injuries throughout the year. She gave us everything she had, every single day, every single practice and every single game.

"The way Darryl came back and impacted this program was so great. I tell people all the time how grateful I am that she came back. She makes me a better person. She's been a great teammate and has been a joy to coach. I'm so thankful that I got to coach her this year.

"With Jenn, there's not enough superlatives to describe her. She put in so much work and that's a testament to who she is. She's a role model for our younger kids to look up to. They all witnessed how much work she did to improve her game and she reaped the rewards. She had a historic season, one that will go down in the record books, not just at Navy and in the Patriot League, but nationally. She left her mark in so many different categories. She's such a great player, but also such a great person. We're all going to miss her.

"I love all three of them, they're family. They've helped us lay a foundation for a pretty bright and exciting future of Navy Women's Basketball."