CALDWELL, N.J. – The Caldwell University women's basketball team defeated Goldey-Beacom College, 87-85 in overtime in the quarterfinals of the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Tournament Saturday afternoon in the George R. Newman Center. The Cougars, who are the top-seeded team from the CACC North, improve to 19-10 on the season and advances to play Philadelphia University in the CACC semifinals on Friday, Mar. 6. The Lightning ends its season at 13-16.

Caldwell, which beat Bloomfield College in double-overtime on Tuesday, led 68-56 with 5:41 left before Goldey-Beacom mounted a comeback. A 16-4 run punctuated by a three-pointer from Lexi Bruno with 24 seconds remaining tied the score at 72-72. A technical foul was called on the Lightning bench for calling a timeout they didn't have, and senior forward Emily Caswell (Wakefield, RI/Prout School) made both free throws for a 74-72 lead. Britani Bryson tied the score again with a basket with nine seconds on the clock, then a Goldey-Beacom foul sent the Cougars to the line shooting 1-and-1. The first attempt was off the mark, and a late shot by the Lightning was blocked, sending the game to overtime.

The score remained tied at 77-77 when senior guard Jessica Coscia (Staten Island, NY/Moore Catholic) converted a conventional three-point play for an 80-77 Caldwell lead. The teams exchanged baskets, then freshman guard Kristen Drogsler (Middle Village, NY/Christ the King) buried a three for an 85-81 edge with under two minutes to play. A basket and two free throws by Lillian Chukwueze sandwiched around two free throws from Drogsler made the score 87-85 with under a minute to play. After Caldwell came up empty on the next possession, Taylor Leonard launched a three with time running down that bounced off the rim. A scramble for the rebound ensued, and time expired with multiple players on the ground. The win allows the Cougars to advance to the CACC semifinals for the fifth consecutive year.

Goldey-Beacom held a 14-11 lead with 11:38 to play in the first half when Caldwell reeled off an 18-3 run for a 29-17 edge at the 5:46 mark. Caswell scored six points, and Drogsler and freshman guard Sharell Sanders (Dorchester, MA/St. Mary's) each had five points in the run. The Lightning closed out the half with a 10-4 run that make the halftime score 33-27 Caldwell. The Cougars shot 44.8 percent from the field compared to 33.3 percent for Goldey-Beacom, and held a 23-16 advantage on the glass in the first half.

Two three-pointers from Drogsler sparked a 10-2 run in the second half that put Caldwell ahead, 60-48 with 8:27. But the Cougars couldn't hold off the Lightning, and the teams played their second overtime game this year. Caldwell defeated Goldey-Beacom, 96-92 in Wilmington on Feb. 14.

Caswell showed why she was named the CACC Player of the Year yesterday, tallying 25 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Cougars. Drogsler finished with a career-high 24 points while shooting 4-of-6 from three-point range. Junior forward Lisa Rovatsos (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) scored 10 points, while Coscia had eight points, five assists and two steals. Bruno led all players with 30 points, while Chukwueze had 20 points, 10 rebounds and three steals for the Lightning.

Caldwell will play Philadelphia, the No. 2 seed from the CACC South, in the semifinals of the CACC Tournament on Friday, Mar. 6. The Rams are serving as host of both the men's and women's CACC basketball tournaments this year. Game time is set for 2:00 p.m. in the Gallagher Center.

CACC Women's Basketball Tournament
Quarterfinals, Saturday, Feb. 28 - at Campus Sites
Game 1: 1S USciences 86, 4N Post 49
Game 2: 3S Holy Family 60, 2N Bloomfield 46
Game 3: 1N Caldwell 87, 4S Goldey-Beacom 85 (OT)
Game 4: 2S Philadelphia 82, 3N Dominican 63

Semifinals, Friday, Mar. 6 - at Philadelphia University, Philadelphia, Pa.
1S USciences vs. 3S Holy Family, 12:00 p.m.
1N Caldwell vs. 2S Philadelphia, 2:00 p.m.

Finals, Saturday, Mar. 7 - at Philadelphia University, Philadelphia, Pa.
Semifinal winners, 4:00 p.m.