WORCESTER, Mass. – The Holy Cross women's basketball team returns to the Hart Center Arena for its home opener against Brown on Wednesday night. The Crusaders earned a thrilling 65-64 victory over the Bears.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Senior captain Meg Cahalan got the Crusaders going, scoring five points in the first two minutes of the opening quarter. The Bears fired back quickly to catch up with Charlotte Adams-Lopez, picking up eight points. Brown's Alyssa Moreland scored five to take the lead for the Bears, 19-14, at the end of the first. 
• Holy Cross worked its way back, scoring seven and holding Brown to only three points in the first five minutes of the second quarter. The Bears came out firing post-media timeout and pulled ahead, adding on six buckets for the 27-23 advantage. Cahalan responded for the Crusaders in the form of a solo 6-0 run to reclaim the lead. A back-and-forth battle concluded with Brown just edging out Holy Cross, 31-30, to end the half. 
• The Crusaders cleaned up in the paint with 18 points to Brown's eight. Freshman guard Asia Wilson and Cahalan both went 3-for-4 from the line through 20 minutes. The captain dropped 10 points, three steals, one assist and two boards. Adams-Lopez led the Bears with 12 points, one assist and three rebounds.
• Strong efforts from junior guard Janie Bachmann and Cahalan to kick off the third quarter. Bachmann converted a layup into a three-point play, drawing a foul on her made basket and Cahalan hit back-to-back triples to put the Crusaders in front and forcing Brown to take a timeout. Out of a short 30-second break, the Bears went on a 7-0 spree for the 46-43 lead heading into the final frame.
• Brown's Aima Ofunrein, Monet Witherspoon and Beth Nelson caused havoc to open the fourth quarter, scoring a combined nine points and push Holy Cross to take a timeout. The Bears outscored the Crusaders 11-6 in the first four minutes of the period. Holy Cross battled its way back with strong defense and a combined team scoring surge from the senior class. For the second consecutive Crusader victory, senior guard Simone Foreman hit the game-winning shot. Holy Cross triumphed 65-64 over Brown.
• The Bears were 24-for-59 from the field while the Crusaders shot 43.1%. Cahalan scored two points shy of her career-high with 23 points. The captain also managed three steals, two blocks, one assist and three boards. Foreman had her first double-double of the season (15 pts., 11 reb).

UP NEXT:

• The Crusaders (2-1) return to action on Sunday, Nov. 16, for a 1:00 pm tip-off at Marist (0-3) in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., at McCann Arena.

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