BUFFALO, N.Y. – The D'Youville University women's basketball played their first conference home game on Friday night, falling to Mercy University by a score of 64-50.
 
Senior Sofie Fuglsang (Oberanven, Luxembourg) put together a standout performance in the loss, scoring 18 points, tying a career-high, and recording a career-high five steals. Freshman Allie Hall (Rochester, N.Y.) had a career-best performance, scoring 15 points and grabbing 14 rebounds, both career-highs.
 
After a slow start in the first quarter, Fuglsang knocked down a pair of three-pointers and senior Anna Jankovic (Averill Park, N.Y.) put in a layup to fuel an 8-0 run for the Saints. Freshman Aliviya Vallone Russell (Buffalo, N.Y.) dropped in a three-pointer with 1:33 left in the second quarter, and DYU went to halftime trailing 35-13.
 
The Saints began the third quarter on an 8-0 run sparked by a Fuglsang three-pointer and two layups from Hall to cut the deficit to 35-21. Another layup from Hall and two free throws from junior Morgan Giancaterino (Orchard Park, N.Y.) made it a 40-27 game with 5:34 remaining in the third quarter. Giancaterino knocked down a three-pointer at the 4:49 mark to cut it to a 12-point deficit. Layups from Hall and Jankovic made it 46-34 as the third quarter came to an end.
 
Redshirt sophomore Megan Fedor (Elmira, N.Y.) cashed in from beyond the arc to make it 50-37 in the early going of the fourth quarter. However, an 8-2 run from the Mavericks opened their lead back up to nineteen with under four minutes left to go in regulation. The Saints continued to battle, though, as Fuglsang knocked down her fourth three-pointer of the night and a close-range jumper to make it 61-48 with 1:22 remaining. Hall put in a layup with 25 seconds remaining, but Mercy would go on to secure the 64-50 victory.
 
With the loss, D'Youville drops to 2-8 (0-3 ECC) and will host St. Thomas Aquinas College at the Saints Center on Sunday at 1:00 p.m.