BOX SCORE

Geneseo, NY (March 4, 2011) – Junior Cherelle Simmons recorded her 11th double-double of the season but the DeSales University women's basketball team shot just 29.0 percent from the field and saw a furious late rally come up short as the Bulldogs season came to a close with a 62-51 loss to SUNY-Geneseo in the opening round of the NCAA Division III Tournament.

The Bulldogs finish the season with a 19-9 overall record, having won their fourth straight Freedom Conference title, and advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth straight year and 11th time in school history.

Simmons finished with 15 points, 12 rebounds, and three blocked shots to lead DeSales, while freshman Sondrine Glovas also played well, finishing with 14 points and five steals in the loss. Senior Lori Lidlow totaled 10 points in the final game of her career and freshman Megan Gallagher led the charge off the bench with six points and three boards.

Khadija Campbell got the Blue Knights off to a quick start with 13 of her team-high 15 points in the first half, Melissa Graham added 13 points and seven boards, and Alyssa Polosky finished with 11 points and three blocks for Geneseo.

Geneseo had a strong start to the game, taking a 10-point lead at the 11:28 mark before five quick points from the Bulldogs, all by Simmons, cut the margin down to five with 10:25 left to play. It was still a five-point game with 6:04 to go when Geneseo out-scored the Bulldogs 13-5 over the final six minutes to take a 13-point lead into the locker rooms.

DSU shot just 32.1 percent from the field, while the Blue Knights torched the nets at a 53.8 percent clip.

In the second, Geneseo extended its lead up to 17 points (49-32) when the Bulldogs switched to a zone and started to frustrate the Blue Knights. DeSales chipped away at lead over the next five minutes and then used an 11-2 run over the span of four minutes to get within five points (54-49) with just over three minutes left.

Geneseo answered with a big three from Brittany Finkle from the left corner at the end of the shot clock to push the home team's lead up to eight points. Simmons answered with a jumper and after a defensive stop the Bulldogs had a chance to cut the margin down to one possession but a turnover gave the ball back to Geneseo and they made 5-of-8 from the line over the final 62 seconds to post the final margin.

The Bulldogs finished the game shooting just 29.0 percent from the field, their fourth lowest shooting total of the season. DSU did a terrific job on defense in the second-half, holding the Blue Knights to just 21 points and 26.1 percent shooting after they had totaled 41 points and shot better than 50 percent in the opening half.