PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Chatham Women's Basketball (13-6, 6-5 PAC) could not overcome a slow start against Bethany (14-6, 9-2) on Wednesday night, falling 74-67.
 
Ella Simpson led all scorers with 25 points with 9 rebounds for the Bison. Lindsey Garrison contributed 16 points with 4 assists. Lindsey Best netted 15 points on 6-8 from the field for Bethany. Kaedlee Potter recorded 12 points, 14 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 blocks.
 
Senior Madison Nereu was the Cougars' top scorer with 22 points on 10-20 shooting, adding 5 assists, 4 boards, 3 steals and 2 blocks. Senior Maria Barela netted 11 points for Chatham. Senior Julia Calvin and junior Hannah Stephanites both contributed 10 points on 2 three-point baskets. Senior Alyssa Laukus had 8 points and 5 assists.
 
Hannah Chenault opened the game with a three-pointer, but the Bison countered that with an 18-2 scoring run. The Bison would close the quarter on a 6-0 run as well, and led 26-9 after the opening frame. Bethany's largest lead would be 20 points before a 13-2 Cougars' run with 6 Laukus points cut their deficit to 34-25. The Bison scored the final 6 points of the half to bring a 15-point advantage into the locker room.
 
Chatham trailed 44-28 in the third quarter, but a 12-2 run aided by 6 Nereu points got the Cougars back within 6. Chenault's basket with three minutes left in the frame was the 1,000th point of her Chatham career and made the score 48-42. An 8-2 scoring run by the Cougars to begin the fourth quarter brought them with 2 points, capped by Stephanites' driving layup. Bethany responded with a 7-0 run, however, and led 61-52 with five minutes remaining. Barela's triple cut the Chatham deficit to 4 with four minutes to play, but it would not be enough as the Bison made their free throws down the stretch to close out the 7-point victory.
 
Bethany's 90.5 percent free throw shooting (19-21) was the highest by a Cougars' opponent this season. The Bison shot 43.3 percent from the field (26-60) and outrebounded Chatham 47-23. The Cougars shot 41.9 percent from the field (26-62) in the contest.
 
Women's Basketball will look for a bounce-back victory on Saturday at Allegheny at 1 p.m.