Salem, Va. -- University of Lynchburg's women's basketball team was unable to hold onto a halftime lead Wednesday, eventually falling to host Roanoke, 78-72, in a midweek Old Dominion Athletic Conference matchup.

The Hornets led 41-29 at the break, but Roanoke's big third quarter erased the deficit. The Maroons came from behind again in the waning minutes to steal the win.

Senior forward Molly Shephard (Charlottesville, Va.) led all Lynchburg scorers with 28 points, adding 10 rebounds. Sophomore guard Carolyn Noe (Fairfax, Va.) chipped in 16 points, going 4-for-7 from 3-point land.

Molly Hassell led the Maroons with 19 points.

THE RUNDOWN

Final: Roanoke 78, Lynchburg 72

Records: Roanoke (16-9, 9-9 ODAC), Lynchburg (13-11, 11-6 ODAC)

Venue: Cregger Center, Roanoke College, Salem, Va.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Leading by four after the first period, Lynchburg steadily built a lead in the second to take a 12-point advantage into halftime. Shephard scored 13 of her points in the first half.

• The Maroons stormed back in the third, using an 11-2 run to cut the deficit to three and eventually tied the game at 54 on Hassell's 3 in the final minute of the period.

• The Hornets retook the lead early in the fourth and held a 67-64 advantage with 3:57 to play. Roanoke followed with six unanswered points to take a 75-70 lead and held on to win.

LOOKING AHEAD

Lynchburg will return home Saturday, Feb. 16 to close out the regular season against Shenandoah at 2 p.m. Senior Day festivities are scheduled before tipoff.

--LYN--