BUFFALO, NY - Despite a furious fourth-quarter rally, the Villa Maria College women's basketball program came up short, dropping it's season opener 64-61 to the Fisher College Falcons on Friday evening as part of the Villa Maria Tip-Off Classic inside the Villa Athletic Center.  

Despite trailing by 12 in the early stages of the fourth quarter, Villa stayed composed and fought back and got to within a point, 53-52 with 6:33 left.  Fisher bumped that lead up to seven and kept it inside the two minute mark.  The Vikings did have a chance with three seconds to try and tie the game, but a corner three by junior guard Chmicka Kennedy was just a bit strong and off the mark.

Senior forward Shaquana Owens and sophomore guard Armoni Jordan led the way scoring for Villa, each netting 16 points.  Owens added a game-high 16 rebounds and Jordan chipped in with eight boards and five steals.  Kennedy finished with nine points, nine rebounds and six assists.

Villa shot just 31.7 percent from beyond the arc while Fisher wasn't much better, shooting 31.9 percent.  The Vikings held a 42-28 advantage in points in the paint but ultimately were done in by just 5-of-27 shooting from beyond the arc and a poor third quarter in which they were outscored 28-19.  The Vikings were able to recover in the fourth however and win the quarter 20-13 and nearly complete the comeback.

Junior forward Tekia Gary, who battled foul trouble for most of the night, added eight points, while junior forward Nina Cray struggled from the floor, but still managed to post siz points and 12 rebounds.

Kellie Gaston led Fisher in scoring, netting 19 points, while Jenny-Lynn Eggers was close behind with 18.  Fisher also won the battle on the board, out-rebounding Villa 48-38.

In the earlier women's game of the Classic, The University of Maine at Fort Kent Bengals defeated the Warren Wilson College Owls 73-38.  Villa will take on Warren Wilson on Saturday at 2 p.m. while the Bengals and Falcons will lock up at noon.  

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