Owls Drop Opener 68-64

Friday, November 18

Davie, FLA. (FAU-Davie/Broward CC-Central)

7:00 PM

Florida Atlantic

Navy

Florida Atlantic

11/18/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Nov. 18, 2005

Final Stats

DAVIE, FL -- A late run by Florida Atlantic University came up a little short as the Owls dropped their season opener 68-64 to the Navy Midshipmen in day one of the FAU Tip-Off Classic.

The Owls rallied from a 58-52 deficient to tie the game at 64 with just 41 seconds left in the game. On the ensuing possession Ashely Pelzek buried a triple to give the Mids a three point lead. Cristal Randolph than had two good looks from distance that rimmed out to preserve the win for Navy. Pelzek finished 13 points on the night and was 4-of-7 from beyond the arc.

The Owls held the halftime lead 36-29 due to their tenacious defense that caused the Mids to commit 17 turnovers in the first half. FAU converted those turnovers into 12 points in the session.

Navy shot just 38.1 % from the floor in the first half as they connected on just 8-of -21 shots, while FAU cashed in on 15-of -33 tries for 45.5 %.

Free throws proved to be the difference as FAU shot a mere 48.1 % on the night, while the Mids cashed in on 21 of their 30 attempts from the stripe.

"We got to do a better job at the line if we are going to win, especially close games like tonight," head coach Chancellor Dugan said. "However, I was very proud of our grit as we battled back from a big deficit, but came up a little short."

Shontavia Williams led FAU with 14 points on the night. Freshman Brittney Crenshaw and transfer Demina Anderson dropped in 10 points a piece off the bench.

Lauren Skrel led all scorers with 23 points as she was 7-of-12 from the floor and 7-of-9 from the free-throw line. Carly Meyer added nine for the Mids.

The Owls will be back in action tomorrow night at Broward C.C. Central located in Davie, FL as they will take on Delaware State to conclude the FAU Tip-Off Classic. The Lady Hornets were victorious today with 50-44 win over Monmouth.

Since the 1994-95 season FAU is 6-9 on the second day of back-to-back games. Tip Time is set for 7 p.m. The game can be heard on fausports.com.