HAMILTON – The Colgate women's basketball team turned out a season-best performance from the free throw line but struggled from the field in a tough 63-42 loss to Bucknell Saturday afternoon at Cotterell Court.
 
The Raiders shot 89.5 percent (17-of-19) from the charity stripe, but just 25.5 percent (12-of-47) from the field and 14.3 percent (1-of-7) from 3-point range.
 
Chelsey Koren led Colgate with a 12 points. Summer King registered her sixth double-double of the season with 10 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
 
Baskets from King and Koren got the Raiders out to a 4-0 lead just under three minutes into the game. The Bison scored the final five points of the opening quarter and the first 10 points of the second term to put the Raiders in a 15-4 hole with 6:34 left in the half.
 
A King layup finally stopped the Bucknell streak, but the Bison eventually stretched their lead to as much as 25-8 with just over two minutes to play in the stanza. A Koren jumper and layup from Abby Schubiger put four more Raiders points on the board, but Colgate faced a 27-12 deficit heading into halftime.
 
The Raiders went 9-for-10 from the free throw line and added a jumper in the third quarter, but the Bison carried a 51-23 lead into the final term. Colgate continued its strong showing from the charity stripe in the fourth quarter, going 8-for-9 and adding baskets from Tegan Graham and Koren, but it wasn't enough as Bucknell closed out the 63-42 win.
 
Bottom Line
• Bucknell 63, Colgate 42
 
Won-Lost Records
• The Raiders drop to 4-20 on the season and 0-13 in the Patriot League.
• Bucknell improves to 16-8 overall and 10-3 in league action.
 
Key Raider Info
• Koren reached double-figure scoring in consecutive games for the first time in her career.
• This was Koren's fifth game leading the Raiders in scoring, good for second on the team.
• King's double-double was her first since Jan. 17.
• She added two blocked shots and three steals to her line score.
• Graham followed with nine points and five boards. She finished the week with 14 points and 11 rebounds.
• Colgate improved to 70.2 percent from the free throw line. The team's best previous game was 11-of-13 (84.6) last month at American.
 
Facts & Figures
• Bucknell finished the game shooting 39.7 percent (25-of-63) from the field, 33.3 percent (10-of-30) from 3-point range. They were 3-for-5 from the charity stripe.
• The Bison held a 41-34 rebound edge.
• Bucknell scored 17 second-chance points off 14 offensive boards.
• Attendance at Cotterell Court for the annual Pink Game and National Girls and Women in Sports Day was 439.
• After the game, Colgate student-athletes hosted local children for a multisport skills clinic.
 
From the Source
• Head Coach Bill Cleary (On the game) "With the exception of the first five minutes of the third quarter, I was really happy with what we were doing defensively. Our kids played hard – again, except for those first five minutes of the third. They played with grit and played with passion.
 
"But every shot we take, we feel like we HAVE to make it. And we're carrying all of those misses with us in every game. We need to have shorter memories and have a shooter's mentality – like being a closer in baseball. If you give up that run, you want the ball in the next game ready to make the save.
 
"Unfortunately our record doesn't show it, but our defense got better again today. Offensively, we got good looks. It seems as though we are struggling offensively because we are not making shots. How many layups did we have that rimmed in and out? We've just got to stop carrying every miss with us."
 
Up Next
• The Raiders hit the road for a midweek battle Wednesday at Lehigh.
• Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. from Bethlehem, Pa.