RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Four players finished in double figures for Post University Women's Basketball on Tuesday night against Felician University with graduate point guard Dede Stevenson leading the way with 18 points on 6-of-14 shooting. However, a 34-point game from freshman forward Ane Valle on 15-of-21 shooting and an 18-point, 12-rebound double-double which included a 12-for-12 night from the free throw line by freshman guard Katherine Ritchie handed the Eagles their first conference loss, 81-68, against the Golden Falcons.

THE BASICS

Post University 68, Felician University 81

Post University (7-6, 3-1 CACC) 
 
Felician University (4-10, 4-1 CACC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
18 first-half points by Valle helped pace the Felician offense which manufactured 41 points in the opening 20 minutes of play. Valle shot a blistering 9-for-10 from the floor, accounting for over half of the field goals that the Golden Falcons had in a first half in which they finished 17-of-33 (51.5%) overall with an 0-for-5 showing from beyond the arc. On the other end, it was Stevenson leading the scoring for Post with 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting while graduate shooting guard Maya Klein was close behind with eight points on 3-of-5 shooting with two made threes.
 
Both sides would commit 14 first-half turnovers, but they would prove to be more costly for the Eagles whose largest lead was four points with 3:59 left in the first quarter, 18-14, and their last lead of the entire game would come in the second quarter, 24-23, with 7:59 remaining. The Golden Falcons would control the rest of the way as their ensuing 8-0 run gave them a seven-point lead which ballooned to as many as 13 points before Klein's three in the closing minute made it a 41-31 ballgame heading into the half.
 
Valle would pick up right where she left off in the second half for the Golden Falcons, hitting a jumper right out of the gate to push her point total to 20 points and counting. With 4:59 to go in the third, back-to-back threes from graduate guard Amaya Santiago and Klein cut the Eagle deficit down to five points, 52-47, which was the closest Post would be able to get the rest of the way as Felician punched back with a 6-0 run to regain their double-digit edge into the fourth.
 
The Golden Falcons would keep their foot on the gas into the fourth quarter, leading by as many as 17 points with 5:35 remaining in regulation after Valle finished off a three-point play to make it 72-55. Klein would go on to finish with 17 points on 5-of-12 shooting with four made shots from three while graduate forward Taina Pagan added 11 points with five rebounds, and graduate guard TiJanae Simmons tacked on 10 points of her own to round out the foursome in double digits for the Eagles who fell 81-68. The loss snaps a three-game winning streak for Post and is their first conference loss of the season.

BY THE NUMBERS  

• With six steals in the game, Trinity Bravo set a career-high and season-high for most steals in a game, surpassing the mark of five steals in a game which she set against Dominican (N.Y.) on December 2^nd, 2023 – It is the first game in which a player has had six steals since the 2021-22 season when Jaeonna Sutton and Makayla Thompson had six against St. Thomas Aquinas and Nyack, respectively
• Between Mitchell College and Post, Le'Sandra Turner had 982 career points entering tonight's game – Turner did not score against Felician, remaining still just 18 points away from the 1,000 point mark
• The loss to Felician snaps a three-game winning streak for Post University in the all-time series and is the first time they have lost on the road to the Golden Falcons since the 2017-18 season in which they fell 59-32

WHO'S NEXT 
Post University comes home for a two-game homestand which will kick off on Saturday afternoon at 2:00 PM against Goldey-Beacom College in the Drubner Center. The Eagles have won four of their last five games against the Lightning, including each of the last three meetings. Last time at the Drubner Center, Post won narrowly, 75-73, holding off a late Goldey-Beacom rally that brought them within a point with a second left.