BRONX, NY (www.oldwestburypanthers.com) – The SUNY College at Old Westbury women's basketball team participated in the CUNYAC Coaches vs. Cancer and earned a non-conference overtime victory against the Lehman Lightning, 61-58, on Saturday at The Apex. Old Westbury climbs to 6-1 on the season while Lehman falls to 2-6. 

With Lehman leading 20-13 with 10:54 on the first half clock junior Shannon Gilly (Staten Island, NY) drilled a three-pointer to start a 10-0 Panther run. Freshman Krystina Agard (Queens, NY) followed with a three-ball while senior Avery Josey (Staten Island, NY) and junior Brittany Jones (Elmont, NY) knocked down jumpers to give Old Westbury their first lead of the game, 23-20 with 7:47 remaining. Old Westbury scored six of the final eight points to take a 30-27 lead into the locker room. 

Both teams struggled in the second-half as Old Westbury shot 29 percent (9-of-31) from the field while Lehman hit 10-of-33 (30.3 percent). Lehman used an 11-5 second chance scoring advantage in the second stanza to outscore Old Westbury 26-23 to send the game into overtime. Junior Dorthy Hunte (Bronx, NY) forced the overtime by hitting a layup with 10 seconds left in regulation to knot the game at 53 all. 

The overtime period witnessed Avery Josey score the first four points to open the five-minute period and give Old Westbury a 57-53 advantage. Lehman responded with the next four points on layups by Hunte and senior Barbara Febus (Bronx, NY). Krystina Agard sank a layup with 19 seconds left and Lehman's Dorthy Hunte was fouled with 8 seconds left but hit just one of two free throws. Agard sealed the victory by hitting both her free throws with four seconds left to play. 

Three Panthers scored in double figures in the contest led by Krystina Agard's 19, four assists, three steals and one blocked shot. Junior Brittany Jones (Elmont, NY) dropped in 12 and grabbed 13 boards in getting her fourth double-double of the season. Avery Josey rounded out the double-digit Panthers with 12 points. Also playing well for the Panthers was sophomore Courtney Milton (Bronx, NY), who scored six points on 3-of-3 shooting from the field, pulled-down six rebounds (three offensive) and had one swat in 19 minutes of court time. 

Lehman was led by Dorothy Hunte who scored 17 points and came down with seven rebounds. Senior Kelsey Ash (Santee, CA) followed with 10 points and junior Melissa St. Louis (Brooklyn, NY) scored nine and banned 10 rebounds in the loss. Freshman Paula Robinson (Bronx, NY) chipped in with 9 and two steals. 

The Panthers outrebounded the Lightning 53-48 and outscored them 17-12 on second chance points with a 21-18 offensive board advantage, including a game-best four by senior Krystal Garner (Staten Island, NY). The Panthers struggled with shooting, connected on just 25 percent (5-of-20) from three-point range, 63.6 percent (14-of-22) from the free throw line and 31.8 percent (21-of-66) of shots from inside the arc. Old Westbury took advantage of 24 Lehman turnovers, outscoring the Lightning 24-15 in points off of turnovers. Old Westbury held the edge in bench points, 9-8 while Lehman dominated the paint with a 34-18 scoring advantage. 

MERCHANT MARINE NEXT FOR THE PANTHERS: Old Westbury will take on the Merchant Marine on Friday evening in non-conference play in Old Westbury, New York. Panthers and Merchant Marine tangle at 5 p.m. at the Clark Athletic Center. Please visit www.oldwestburypanthers.com for more information on women's basketball or any of the other Panther athletic teams.