The York University Lions women's basketball team made the short trip downtown to the Mattamy Athletic Centre on Wednesday night to face the TMU Bold in the penultimate game of the regular season.

Despite a strong second quarter and 25 points from leading scorer Kiara Leveridge, the Lions went down to defeat, dropping a 74-66 decision to TMU, and are officially eliminated from playoff contention.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Both teams struggled to find their footing early, with the first points coming 1:44 into the game. York took an early 5-2 lead on a Gabby Di Pietro three and a Bilan Khadar layup, but a 14-5 run by the Bold to finish the quarter had them up 16-10 after one.
• The second was all Lions. Leveridge posted 12 of her 25 on the night in the frame, while Di Pietro had seven and Ruqaya Green had six. The visitors put together a 19-6 run over a period of 6:24, and took a 35-30 lead into the break.
• The third quarter saw the Bold respond. They posted a 12-2 run over the first half of the third quarter to take a 42-37 lead. The Lions rallied to tie at 48, but a Corrynn Parker three gave TMU the lead back headed to the fourth. 
• The home side began the fourth on a 12-4 run and appeared to have the game in control, leading 63-52. However, the Lions refused to go away, and punched back with a 10-2 run of their own over the next 2:46, cutting the lead to three. They eventually trimmed the deficit to one with 1:08 to go, but some crucial errors and clutch Bold free throws down the stretch iced it for TMU, as they walked away with a 74-66 victory.

LOOKING AHEAD:

The final game of the season for the Lions will be the rematch between them and the Bold at Tait McKenzie Centre on Saturday night. Tip-off is set for 6:00 pm on grad night from the den.