Led by four in double figures, the University of Rochester women's basketball turned in one of its best offensive performances of the season on its way to an upset of No. 22 Emory University in its regular-season finale on Friday evening at the Woodruff P.E. Center.
The Yellowjackets shot 47.8 percent from the floor, connecting on 33-of-69 attempts, their fourth-highest shooting percentage this season and their second-best in University Athletic Association play.
Rochester wraps up the year at 11-14 (6-8 UAA), while the 22nd-ranked Eagles move to 19-6 (9-5 UAA).
Izzy Munson got the scoring started for the home squad with a three-pointer 20 seconds in before Abby Gress got the 'Jackets on the scoreboard a little over a minute later with her first bucket of the night.
Gress and Callie McCulley went back-to-back with a pair of layups to give Rochester its first lead of the night, and after Munson scored again, Haley Dumiak and Hannah Lindemuth got on the scoreboard to make it an 8-5 UR lead.
Over the next two minutes, the Yellowjackets and Eagles would go back and forth, trading buckets in a first quarter that saw 41 points scored. The two sides stood tied at 8-8 after Paige Gross' triple, at 10-all following buckets from McCulley and Claire Brock, and 12-12 after Lindemuth and Brock traded layups.
Overall, the game featured 10 ties and seven lead changes, five of which came in the first quarter, including Alexandra Loucopoulos' triple, which helped Emory retake a 15-14 lead with 3:14 left in the frame.
Rochester though, would end the first quarter on a 9-3 run, holding the Eagles to just one bucket and forcing two turnovers over the final two minutes of the first. Gress' driving layup gave UR the lead right back, 16-15, just shy of the two-and-a-half minute mark, while Tia Poulakidas knocked down her first jumper of the evening to make it an 18-15 game.
Brock nailed a triple to level the score at 18-all, but Poulakidas scored again to make it 20-18 UR, while Lindemuth matched Brock's three with one of her own to send the 'Jackets into the quarter break up 23-18.
McCulley and Gress kept Rochester's run going with three of the first four buckets of the second, giving the 'Jackets their largest lead of the night, but with a trio of triples, the Eagles made their way back midway through the frame.
Daniella Aronsky got Emory's 11-3 run going with a triple with 6:56 left in the first half before Munson knocked down another to make it a five-point game. Brock added a layup at the 4:37 mark to make it a three-point game, before Aronsky drained another three to level the score at 35-all.
Rochester briefly retook the lead on layups from Gress and McCulley, but the Eagles would finish the first half on an 8-1 run, holding Rochester without a field goal over the final three minutes to take a 43-40 lead at the break.
Gress closed the gap to one to start the third, but minutes later, Morgan Laudick and Katherine Martini hit back-to-back jumpers to give the Eagles their largest lead of the night, 52-45, 2:35 into the third.
UR quickly answered with a 7-0 run, and Rylee Drahos' triple leveled the score at 52-all with 5:40 left in the quarter. But five straight from the Eagles gave Emory the lead right back before two more from Brock and Lily Kennedy again made it a seven-point game.
Once again though, the Yellowjackets came up with a response, and after Poulakidas sank another two, Lindemuth connected on a jumper and drew the foul to make it a one-possession game.
Rochester would head into the fourth down by a pair, 65-62, and then quickly tied the score at 67-all on Lindemuth's three at the 7:46 mark.
Just like the third, the 'Jackets and Eagles would trade runs throughout the fourth. Emory responded to Lindemuth's three with four in a row, opening up a 71-67 lead, before the 'Jackets answered to take their first lead since the second, with Gress and Poulakidas combining for six straight.
Poulakidas' jumper, giving the first-year a career-high 16 points on the night, gave Rochester a 73-71 advantage, but two Aronsky free throws tied the game just shy of the four-minute mark.
On the ensuing possession, Gress hit a jumper to make it 75-73, and after Munson missed on the other end, Gress beat the Eagles down the court on the fastbreak, scoring off an assist from Kat Jenks to extend the lead to four with 3:36 left to play.
Aronsky knocked down a three to make it a one-point game, before both sides missed on their ensuing possessions, giving Rochester the ball with a little over two minutes left.
Gress scored again, this time a jumper at the 1:56 mark, as the senior scored all of Rochester's final seven points. Gress' jumper brought UR's lead back out to a three-point game, but Munson had an answer for the Eagles, again pulling Emory within one, 79-78, with 1:28 to play.
A foul sent Gress to the line, where the senior went 1-for-2, sending the two sides into the final minute with Rochester leading 80-78.
A turnover gave Rochester the ball back, but UR turned it over themselves just seconds later, giving the Eagles a chance to potentially take the last shot. Brock's first attempt was blocked by McCulley, but the Emory senior got her own rebound.
Out of a timeout, Brock missed again and again corralled the miss, but with just seconds left, the Eagles weren't able to get another shot off, and the 'Jackets pulled out the 80-78 victory.
Gress led the 'Jackets with 23 points, adding six rebounds, three assists and two steals, while Lindemuth tallied 18 points and a team-high five assists. Poulakidas also scored in double figures with a career-high 16 points, while McCulley notched a double-double with 11 points and a team-high 11 rebounds.
As a team, Rochester outrebounded Emory, 41-32, and outscored the Eagles in the paint, 52-32, and 14-2 on second-chance opportunities.