Final Stats

ANNAPOLIS, MD. -- The Saints overcame a 10-point second half deficit to force overtime and led by as many as five points in the extra session before Navy rallied late to sneak past Siena Women's Basketball 59-58 in the Navy Classic at Alumni Hall. Sophomores Margot Hetzke and Kollyns Scarbrough recorded career performances for the Saints, combining for 35 points and 27 rebounds.

Siena (0-5) will now face Morgan State (1-4) in the Navy Classic Consolation Game Saturday at 3:30 p.m., while the host Mids (4-1) play Colorado State (4-1) in the Championship Game to follow at 6 p.m. The Rams scored the final 16 points of their game to defeat the Bears 54-36 earlier Friday.

Scarbrough scored all of her career-high 19 points in the second half and added eight rebounds and a career-high five steals for the Saints. Classmate Hetzke broke out for 16 points and a career-high 19 rebounds to post her sixth career double-double for Siena which has now had three of its opening five losses decided by four points or less.

The Saints scored six of the first seven points of overtime, opening as big as a five-point advantage at 53-48 following a Scarbrough layup with 2:56 to play. But Navy responded with an 11-3 run, highlighted by a Justice Swett three-point play to put the Mids back in front with 39.5 seconds to go.

Navy had several chances to seal it late, but made just 2-6 free throws over the final 22 seconds to leave the door ajar for the Saints. Neither team did itself any favors from the charity stripe where Navy shot just 10-22 (45.5%), while Siena was marginally better in shooting at a 54.2% clip (13-24).

Following a pair of missed free throws by the Mids' Peri Curtis with five seconds remaining, Siena called timeout and was able to advance the ball to midcourt as a result of the new NCAA rule. The Saints got the ball into Hetzke who drove right, but stumbled and the ball bounced out of bounds back to Navy with just three-tenths of a second left to seal the outcome as Siena was denied what would have been a great comeback win.

Siena's dominance on the interior was a key factor in their rally. The Saints held a decided 63-36 edge in rebounding, including 26 offensive rebounds. Siena outscored Navy 36-14 in the paint, including a 26-8 mark over the second half and overtime.

Navy had led by as many as 10 points in a low scoring affair, 33-23 with 5:26 remaining in the third quarter. But the gritty Saints battled back, ultimately scoring 10 unanswered points over just 2:31 to knot the score at 35 following Hetzke's first three-pointer of the year with 8:59 remaining in regulation.

The contest would be tight thereafter as there were a total of six ties and four lead changes in the fourth quarter and overtime. Siena had a chance for a thrilling win in regulation when red-shirt sophomore guard Denisha Petty-Evans stole an inbounds with 12 seconds left and drove the distance of the court, but her contested layup was off the mark.

The Saints had led by as many as six points early, following their first possession of the second quarter. But Siena missed its ensuing 14 shots as Navy scored the next 15 points to open a nine-point lead and ultimately take a 25-16 advantage at the break. The Saints shot better in the second half and overtime, although they finished at just 32.2% overall for the game.

Sarita Condie led Navy with 15 points and five assists, while Curtis added 13 points and eight rebounds for the Mids which have won four straight following a season-opening two-point road loss at regional power Hofstra. The victory also marked Navy's second overtime triumph in three days, following a double overtime win over Elon Tuesday at Alumni Hall.

Junior captain Meghan Donohue added seven points and 11 rebounds for Siena which has now lost its last seven overtime games spanning the past five years.

Despite the loss a young Siena squad which features just four players who appeared in a game last season and eight who didn't log a collegiate minute in 2014-15, continues to show improvement while undertaking a grueling early schedule. The Saints are in the midst of a span where they play five straight away from home and 11 of their first 14 overall to begin the season including nine true road games. Siena battled defending SWAC Champion Alabama State to the wire to conclude a challenging Preseason WNIT last weekend and was every bit the equal today of a Navy team which has posted seven consecutive winning seasons and advanced to postseason play in four of the past five seasons.