EWING, N.J. – A furious comeback in the closing seconds fell just short for the TCNJ women's basketball team, which erased nearly every bit of a double-digit deficit before the Gothic Knights narrowly escaped with a 65-64 victory in a thrilling rematch of last year's NJAC championship game.

Reigning NJAC Player of the Year Damaris Rodriguez put up 27 points, seven rebounds, and eight assists to power NJCU (8-8, 8-3), which has won six straight games and now finds itself tied with Ramapo atop the league standings. The setback dropped the Lions (12-6, 7-4) into a tie for fourth.

Julia Setaro did everything she could to keep TCNJ in contention, piling up a team-high 23 points on 10-of-17 shooting. She had help from Sydney Blum, who made four important 3-pointers, but the hosts were just 9-for-31 from long range and suffered through a couple extended runs by the Rodriguez-led Gothic Knights.

The Lions started fast, scoring nine straight points after Rodriguez' floater on the game's first possession. TCNJ made short work of the Gothic Knights' press, getting a pull-up jumper and a lay-up from Setaro – both on the fast break – around a swished straight-on 3-pointer from Blum.

Emily Toy banked in a 3-pointer from the right wing to make it 12-5 at the midway point of the first quarter, and Katie Fricker's deep jumper stretched the early advantage to nine.

The Lions' ball pressure flustered NJCU into a bevy of early turnovers, including three from Rodriguez in the first five minutes. The Gothic Knights, however, found their footing with a 9-0 run to pull even before Setaro ran down a long rebound and sank a mid-range runner as the buzzer sounded to make it 16-14 after one.

Trailing 26-22, Nina Branchizio passed ahead to Blum for a right-wing triple and, after a pair of NJCU turnovers, Isabella Cafaro got a long jumper to bounce off the back rim and the top of the backboard and in for a 27-26 lead. TCNJ appeared to have gotten to the break with that lead intact, but Rodriguez snared an offensive rebound and barely beat the horn to put the Gothic Knights ahead, 28-27, with the second buzzer-beater in as many quarters.

NJCU took its largest lead on a corner 3 by Rodriguez to start the second half, but Setaro swiftly answered with one of her own. TCNJ regained the lead on a give-and-go from Deiter to Branchizio for a back-door layup. After a Gothic Knight put-back, Setaro and Jada Camacho traded 3-pointers as the intensity ratcheted up.
Rodriguez gave the Gothic Knights their largest lead on a corner 3 to make it 41-35, then kicked out to Camacho for another one after a Lions turnover to extend the spread to nine, cap an 11-0 run, and force a Lions timeout at the 3:49 mark of the third.

Fricker staunched the NJCU spurt with a hard drive and a free throw, and Izzy Leazier converted a pair of her own after beating her defender to the baseline. Leazier cut the visitors' margin to 44-41 on a corner 3 and, after a NJCU miss, Fricker dropped in a basket to slice it to one. Rodriguez ended the Lions' 8-0 run with her second buzzer-beater of the day, dropping in a long runner to give the green and gold a 46-43 lead heading into the final frame.

After Camacho gave NJCU a 55-49 lead on a triple, Blum responded with one in transition before Jimmirah Johnson's put-back put the visitors on top by five (57-52). The lead swelled to eight on another corner 3 by Camacho just shy of the midway point of the quarter, and Rodriguez sank a runner to push the margin into double digits for the first time all day with 4:58 remaining.

After going down by 12, Setaro ended a three-minute drought with a deep pull-up jumper at the 3-minute mark. Morgan Heller hit Branchizio on another back-door cut and to get within 64-56 with 2:29 to go.

Heller gave the Lions a fighting chance with a crucial offensive rebound and kick-out to Setaro, who knocked down a right-wing trey to trim the NJCU lead to 64-59 with just under a minute to go.

NJCU made one of two at the line to stop a scoreless drought that lasted over four minutes, and Setaro connected on another long jumper with 9.6 seconds left to make it 65-61. Setaro's toe was barely on the line, and that proved decisive when the Gothic Knights missed both free throws and Sydney Blum nailed a left-wing 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left. It made it a 65-64 game, but would have been a game-tying shot if Setaro had been a touch further back.

TCNJ fouled immediately on the inbounds pass and NJCU missed two more, but there was no time for Heller to throw up a heave after grabbing the rebound.

Setaro and Blum combined to hit seven of the nine treys for TCNJ. Blum added six rebounds, tied with Heller and one shy of Leazier for the team lead.

Branchizio struggled from the field but made up for it with a career-high seven assists and four rebounds. Deiter finished with eight points on an array of decisive post moves.

The Lions are back in action at Rowan next Wednesday.