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SCRANTON, Pa. – The Cabrini College women's basketball season came to an end tonight with a 68-60 loss at Marywood University in the first round of the 2012 Colonial States Athletics Conference (CSAC) tournament.  After five consecutive wins, the Cavaliers close the campaign with an overall record of 12-14, 10-6 in the CSAC.

Sophomore MaryKate McCann tied a career-high with 19 points.  Junior Renee Deas and sophomore Leithie Faison tallied 10 points each off the bench.

Both teams struggled to get their offenses going during the first half, as the defenses seemed to control the game.  Though the game remained close, the Pacers managed to build a 19-12 lead with eight minutes to play before the break.

Seconds later, McCann found freshman Amber Keys for a lay-up, sending the Cavaliers on a 11-3 spurt.  McCann's three-pointer gave the Blue and White its first lead of the game at 23-22 with just under three minutes until halftime.

By the break, the teams were knotted at 26.  Cabrini committed 12 first half turnovers and recorded 13 less field goal attempts than Marywood, but made up the difference by going 4-7 from beyond the three-point arc.  McCann and Faison each knocked down a pair of treys before the break.

Marywood took a slim lead early in the second half but Cabrini kept the game within reach.  Trailing 38-32 with 14:02 on the clock, sophomore Brittany Sandone nailed a three-pointer followed by a lay-up from freshman Megan Decker cut the deficit to one point. 

Minutes later, the Cavaliers took their first lead at 41-40 with 10:25 to play when Faison connected on two free throws.  Marywood responded with an 11-2 run to reclaim the game's momentum and a 51-43 lead. 

Two McCann Free throws followed by a four point possession after a Marywood technical foul cut Cabrini's deficit to 51-49 with 4:38 on the clock.  Just when it looked as if the Cavaliers had seized the momentum, Marywood outscored Cabrini 8-0 over the next three minutes, leaving the Blue and White in a 59-49 hole with just 95 seconds to play.

The Cavaliers shot just 27.5% from the floor in the second half, connecting on just 1-7 from three-point range. Meanwhile, the Pacers converted 12-20 field goals attempts, including 3-4 from deep, and 75% from the charity stripe to seal the win.

McCann, who also scored 19 points in Cabrini's first game against Marywood, also grabbed five rebounds and recorded three steals.  Decker grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds in the loss.

The loss marked the end of the career of Cabrini's lone senior Jenn Casper.  Casper tallied four points in her Cabrini finale. The senior business administration major appeared in 48 games, making four starts during the 2011-12 campaign, and averaged 2.7 points and 2.3 rebounds per game.

Senior Marielle Thorsen led the Pacers (18-8) with 19 points and four steals, while fellow senior Mariah Schaeffer posted a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds. 

Marywood will travel to top seeded Gwynedd-Mercy for a Wednesday CSAC semifinal.  The other semifinal finds #3 Immaculata visiting #2 Baptist Bible College.  The semifinal winners will meet on Saturday evening for the conference title and the CSAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.