Ewing, NJ … The College of New Jersey women's basketball team dropped a tough 54-53 overtime decision to Stockton University on Wednesday night in Packer Hall.
 
A controversial call with 1.5 seconds left sent sophomore forward Sasha Williams (Cherry Hill, NJ/Cherry Hill West) to the foul line. She knocked down the second of two free throws to give the Ospreys their 13^th consecutive win.
 
The loss dropped the Lions to 9-9 on the season and 5-6 in the NJAC. Stockton raised its season record to 15-3 and 8-3 in the conference.
 
Senior Angelica Esposito (Lincroft, NJ/St. John Vianney) had a big game for TCNJ with a game-high 24 points and seven rebounds. Sophomores Cindy Napolitano (Wall, NJ/St. Rose) and Nikki Schott (Washington, NJ/Warren Hills) finished with eight points, while senior Jess Lynch (Newtown, CT/Newtown) grabbed a team-high nine boards.
 
Williams registered a double-double with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Sophomore Lea Mendolla (Nutley, NJ/Mount St. Dominic) was a threat all night from outside and racked up 19 points.
 
TCNJ held the lead for the majority of the game. Despite shooting just 27 percent, they collected a season-high 25 offensive rebounds. That led to 17 second-chance points, which kept them in the driver's seat as the Ospreys hit just 38 percent of their shots.
 
A jumper by junior guard Kim Dana (Freehold, NJ/Freehold) put the Lions ahead 42-39 with 6:08 to play. Osprey forward Marina Lukianov (Howell, NJ/Howell) buried a three from the right side to tie the game at 42 before Williams got the roll on a bank shot. That gave Stockton its first lead since the 4:55 mark of the first period.
 
Trailing 48-46 with under a minute to play, TCNJ got a big defensive stop when sophomore Charlotte Schum (East Hanover, NJ/Morris Catholic) slapped the ball away from Williams in the paint to gain possession. At the other end, Esposito drove the lane and was fouled. She drained both free throws to knot the contest at 48.
 
Stockton had one final possession in regulation, but Schott blocked the attempt at the buzzer to send the game into overtime.
 
Esposito scooped in a layup off transition to put the Lions up 50-48, but Naiha Treadwell evened the score with a layup. Napolitano came up big with a three, but Mendolla connected for her fifth three-pointer of the game to make t a 53-53 score with 1:21 to play.
 
On the final possession, Stockton ran the clock down for the final shot. Williams got the ball approximately 12 feet out and went up for a jumper. Her shot caromed off the rim, but a whistle was blown, sending the sophomore standout to the line. She hit the second free throw to extend Stockton's streak to 13 straight.
 
The Lions will continue their conference schedule this Saturday when they visit Rutgers-Newark for a 6 p.m. start.