BETHLEHEM, PA – Jamiyah Bethune (Union, NJ/Union) scored a career-high 22 points, but the Monmouth University women's basketball team fell to Lehigh in overtime, 95-88, in its season opener Friday night at Stabler Arena.

Five Hawks finished in double figures, with Sarah Olson (Freehold, NJ/Howell [NJIT]) connecting for 18 points, including five three-point field goals. Christina Mitchell (Baltimore, MD/MATHS) posted a double-double of 12 points and 11 rebounds. Jasmine Walker (North Brunswick, NJ/North Brunswick) also added 13 points, while Tyese Purvis (Queens, NY/Francis Lewis [Monroe C.C.]) scored all 11 of her points in the first half, while also adding four assists and three steals.

Freshman point guard McKinzee Barker (Bomont, WV/Clay County) added nine points, nine rebounds, five assists and three steals in her collegiate debut, while turning the ball over just once in 37 minutes. For the game, Monmouth forced 25 Lehigh turnovers and manufactured a 25-11 turnover discrepancy into a 32-12 advantage in points off turnovers. But Lehigh spent much of the night on the free-throw line, making 30-of-36 attempts while enjoying a 30-16 advantage in personal foul calls. Monmouth attempted 100 shots on the night, making 34.

Lexi Martins, Kerry Kinek and Quinci Mann scored 21 points apiece for the Mountain Hawks. Martins also grabbed 20 rebounds, while Kinek also had a double-double with 14 rebounds. Mann led Lehigh with eight points in overtime.

“I thought it was a really hard-fought game,” said Monmouth Head Coach Jenny Palmateer. “I really couldn't be happier or prouder of the fight that our team showed. We had a couple of people – the newcomers, McKinzee Barker and Tyese Purvis – who came in and showed what they're capable of doing. It was a high-pressure situation. Every basket, every stop mattered and I think they showed that they could play with some poise and be major contributors down the stretch in some really close games.”

Monmouth sprinted out to a 7-2 lead in the early going, with three different Hawks accounting for the scoring. Lehigh answered with the next six points to take an 8-7 lead before Monmouth again surged ahead with eight of the next 10 points. Lehigh responded with a 10-1 run to take a 20-16 lead, before Monmouth closed the deficit to 23-21 at the end of the first quarter.

Bethune scored the first three buckets of the second quarter in just 38 seconds as the Hawks took a lead that they wouldn't relinquish until halfway through the fourth quarter. The Hawks went on an 18-2 run from the end of the first quarter until the four-minute mark of the second to take a 37-25 lead. Bethune scored 10 points in the span, while Purvis hit a pair of three-pointers. Lehigh scored its last eight points of the half from the free-throw line to cut the Hawks' lead to six, before Monmouth took a 44-37 lead into the halftime break.

Lehigh scored seven of the first nine points of the second half and 11 of the first 16 to close the Hawks' lead to one, 49-48 with 5:26 left in the third quarter. But a three-point play from Barker swung the momentum back in the Hawks' favor and sparked a 9-0 run to give Monmouth a 58-48 lead. Walker made a pair of fast-break lay-ups off Purvis steals to cap the run.

The Mountain Hawks would score the next six points to cut the Hawks' lead to four and Monmouth maintained a 71-66 lead after three quarters. Lehigh kept threatening the Hawks' lead, but on two occasions, Olson pushed the advantage back to two possessions, first with a three-pointer and next with a driving lay-up. However, Lehigh scored the next five points to take its first lead since the opening seconds of the second quarter on Elizabeth Sharlow's lay-up at the 5:35 mark.

The lead exchanged hands six more times until Mann's jumper with 1:07 remaining gave the Mountain Hawks the lead. The advantage swelled to four, 81-77, with 16 seconds left and the game looked to be out of reach for Monmouth. Mitchell made a putback with seven seconds left, before Lehigh called timeout to advance the ball. However, Walker intercepted the inbounds pass and was inexplicably fouled in the backcourt, sending her to the line for two shots with 1.5 seconds remaining. She calmly buried both free throws to send the game to overtime.

Mann connected on a lay-up to open the scoring in overtime, before Mitchell buried a left wing three to give Monmouth a one-point lead. But Kinek's three-point play with 1:57 left gave Lehigh the lead for good. Olson missed on a three on the other end, but Mann did not, pushing the game to two possessions. The Hawks made it a two-point game from the free-throw line, but Lehigh again responded with a Mann three and two free throws from Amini Affini to give the Mountain Hawks the seven-point cushion that they'd ultimately win by.

“On a positive side, we got off 100 shots,” said Palmateer. “So the pace of play was obviously where we needed it. We forced 25 turnovers, which I'm really, really happy with. Our press was really good. Really we just have to be able to play a little bit better without fouling and shoot a better percentage. But I feel like if we can get 100 shots game in and game out, we're going to win a lot of games.”

For the game, Lehigh outshot Monmouth, 47.6 percent (30-63) to 34.0 percent (34-100) from the floor and 22.7 percent (5-22) to 22.2 percent (10-45) from long range. The Mountain Hawks also hit on 83.3 percent (30-36) from the free-throw line to the Hawks' 62.5 percent (10-16). Lehigh took a 55-50 advantage on the boards. Monmouth forced 25 Lehigh turnovers and took a 32-12 edge in points off turnovers, while coughing it up just 11 times.

The Hawks return to action Thursday, when they play host to former league foe Robert Morris in Monmouth's home opener. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Multipurpose Activity Center.