NORTHFIELD, Vt. – The Norwich University women's basketball team held off Albertus Magnus College's (AMC) late fourth-quarter rally for the 53-48 win on Thursday evening in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) action at Andrews Gymnasium.

The Cadets won their fifth straight home game to improve to 13-9 on the year and 5-4 in conference tilts, while the Falcons saw their six-game GNAC winning streak come to an end with the setback to move to 14-8 overall and 6-3 in league play.

Ahead by two with less than 90 seconds remaining in the game, the Cadets fouled late, bringing Albertus Magnus to the line. The Falcons connected on one of two free throws to pull within one at 49-48. The free throw was the last point of the contest for the visitor as Norwich forced turnovers on three of the final four Falcon possessions.

Over the final 13 seconds of play, Norwich junior guard Kayla Mercer (New Britain, Conn.) hit four free throws to put the game away.

Both teams struggled from the field in the fourth quarter, combining to shoot 22 percent (5-of-22) and commit 13 turnovers.  

The Cadets held Albertus Magnus scoreless for the first 5:24 of the fourth quarter for the 47-40 score until the Falcons returned the favor and held Norwich without a field goal over the final 4:19 regulation to see its comeback attempt fall short.

Norwich erased a one-point halftime deficit by outscoring the Falcons, 16-10, in the third quarter. The Cadets opened the frame with a trey from Mercer to take the lead back. Mercer's shot from deep started a 10-0 run as the Cadets never trailed again in the contest.

During the first half, the two conference foes went back-and-forth. The opening 20 minutes saw four ties and five lead changes. A layup from Cadet junior forward Heather LeBlanc (Sanford, Maine) closed the scoring in the first quarter and knotted the tilt at 13.  In the second quarter, Albertus Magnus' freshman wing Deja Ward (Middletown, Conn.) canned a pair of free throws with under 15 seconds left to give the visitors a 30-29 edge heading into the break.

Junior guard Liz Falcigno (Wallingford, Conn.) led the Albertus Magnus attack with a game-high 17 points to go along with three steals and three assists. Sophomore forward Olivia Bolden (South Windsor, Conn.) recorded her ninth double-double of the winter courtesy of a 10-point, 11-rebound performance. Albertus Magnus' senior forward Chelsea Sherrod (Bridgeport, Conn.) added eight points and 10 rebounds for the guests.

Sophomore guard Shyann Josler (Thetford, Vt.) led the Norwich attack with a game-high 11 points to go along with eight assists. LeBlanc finished the night with seven points and five rebounds with a pair of steals and a block, while Mercer added 10 points with the four rebounds, three assists and a steal on the night.

The Cadets went 13-of-17 (76.5 percent) from the charity stripe, while the Falcons knocked down 16-of-17 (94 percent). Both teams struggled from beyond the arc, as Albertus Magnus hit just 2-of-11 three-point attempts and Norwich shot 33 percent (6-of-18) from deep.

Norwich returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 13, with a road conference clash against Saint Joseph's College of Maine at 1:00 p.m.