Belmont Abbey senior guard Kelsey Daniel posted a career-high and led all scorers with 23 points, but the Crusaders women's basketball team fell at Pfeiffer 80-72 this evening. Pfeiffer improves to 4-5 overall and remains perfect in Conference play with a 4-0 record, while the Abbey falls to 4-6 overall and 2-3 in Conference Carolinas.

Daniel led all scorers with 23 points on six of nine shooting from the field, to go along with a team-high seven rebounds, three steals and two assists. She also sank all 11 of her free throw attempts. Asha Hardaway added 12 points and five rebounds, while Shayla Jackson contributed 11 points on five of seven shooting from the field.

Pfeiffer's Jamilla Harris and Charlotte Fuller both led the Falcons with 18 points, two of four Lady Falcons to reach double figures, as Domonique China and Brittany Cox added 14 and 12 points, respectively.

The Lady Falcons never trailed and as the Abbey cut the lead to one point on four separate occasions, but never gained the lead. After a Hardaway layup trimmed the Pfeiffer advantage to 12-11, the Lady Falcons responded with a 19-6 run over the next seven minutes to extend the lead to 13 at 30-17 with 7:49 remaining. Belmont Abbey countered with a 9-2 run to break the lead back down to six at 32-26 with 4:23 left, but Pfeiffer responded once again, closing the half on a 9-3 run over the final 3:58 to take a 41-29 lead into the half.

Pfeiffer's advantage stayed in double figures for most of the second half, but the Abbey mounted a charge. Trailing 63-53 with 8:38 left, the Abbey went on a 7-2 jaunt in just 38 seconds, fueled by layups from Jackson and Hardaway and a traditional three-point play from Daniel to trim the lead to five with 8:00 to go. China pushed Pfeiffer's lead back to eight with a three-pointer, but Daniel's ensuing layup made it a six-point game with 7:28 left.

China hit back-to-back threes to pad the cushion to 11 points, and free throws from Hardaway and Jackson cut it back to nine. After a Cox jumper moved the lead back to 11, the Abbey scored the next eight points to pull within three points, 73-70 with 2:02 left. Of the eight points, which was started by a runner by Courtney Naquin, six came from Daniel, four from the free throw line, and the final two came on a layup, but the Abbey did not score again until there were 21 seconds left, as Pfeiffer scored six straight points after its lead was trimmed to three.

Both teams shot well from the field, as the Abbey finished with a 49 percent effort and Pfeiffer was 50 percent.