HUNTINGDON, Pa. – The Drew University women's basketball team pulled ahead midway through the fourth quarter, then held off a late rally to defeat host Juniata College 51-48 in a Landmark Conference tilt Friday afternoon.
 
Freshman guard Amy Rachilla tied a season-high with 13 points for the Rangers (5-10, 3-5 LC), shooting 13-for-22 at the foul line. She just missed tying the school record for the most made free throws in a game (14) set by Melissa Morgan-Hostetler C'92 on Nov. 19, 1989 versus Wilkes.
 
Rachilla shot 8-for-14 at the line in the fourth quarter and hit a pair of big free throws in the closing seconds.
 
Senior forward Jamie Struble added her second straight double-double for Drew, posting 12 points and 10 rebounds to go with two blocks and two steals, while freshman guard Olivia Aliotta contributed eight points and seven rebounds.
 
Haily Sherman and Steph Emert scored 13 points apiece for the Eagles (2-12, 1-6 LC).
 
In a defensive-minded opening quarter, the two sides were tied 2-2 five minutes into the game. The Rangers outscored Juniata 6-4 over the remainder of the quarter to carry an 8-6 lead into the second period.
 
The Eagles surged ahead in the early going of the second quarter, using a 15-6 run to assume their largest lead of the day (21-14) with 4:19 left in the stanza. However, that's when Drew answered with a run of its own, ending the half on a 13-1 flurry. Aliotta poured in seven points during the stretch, and Rachilla capped it with a pair of free throws to make it 27-22 at the intermission.
 
Defense was the name of the game once again in the third quarter, when Juniata edged the Rangers 6-5. Sherman hit a jumper with 10 seconds on the clock and the Eagles trailed just 32-28 heading into the final period.
 
The Rangers cashed in at the foul line in the fourth quarter, shooting 13-for-19 at the charity stripe over the final stanza. Drew started the quarter on a 5-0 run during which it made 5-of-8 foul shots, opening up its largest lead of the game at 37-28 with 6:32 remaining.  
 
Drew still led by nine following a lay-up from Struble with 4:00 to go. However, Juniata responded with a quick 6-0 spurt to pull within three less than a minute later. The Eagles narrowed the deficit to 44-42 with 2:05 left after Emert converted her third straight basket, but that's as close as the Eagles would get.
 
Struble helped stem the rally when she connected on a long jumper for the Rangers. Sophomore forward Gianna Pica then came up big at both ends of the floor, starting with a defensive rebound with 1:08 to go. At the other end, she hauled in an offensive board, then drove to the bucket for a layup that put Drew up 48-42 with 39 ticks showing.
 
Sherman cut the deficit in half with a 3-pointer, but Rachilla iced it for the Rangers, hitting a pair of free throws with nine seconds left. Sophomore forward Beth Dobrich split a trip to the line with four seconds remaining before Juniata hit a 3 at the buzzer.
 
The Rangers are back in action on Wednesday, when they visit Elizabethtown College at 7 p.m. in another Landmark Conference affair.