Penn women's basketball beats Harvard for first time since 2004

Facing a 17-game losing streak and an Olympian, the Quakers were going to need some big performances to top Harvard Friday night.

And that is exactly what they got, none bigger than from freshman Keiera Ray, en route to a 77-72 victory over the Crimson.

The win over Harvard (13-7, 4-2 Ivy), coupled with Dartmouth’s loss to Princeton, puts Penn (11-9, 4-2) into a three-way tie for second place in the Ancient Eight.

The Quakers also snapped a 17-game losing streak against the Crimson, earning their first win in the series in more than nine years.

“I think you need to make [step-up] wins, and I think this is one that will certainly help us,” coach Mike McLaughlin said.

Ray, who fought through what appeared to be leg cramps late in the second half, finished with a career-high 31 points.

Several other Quakers had outstanding performances, including sophomore Kathleen Roche, who finished with 13 points and several timely threes. Junior guard Alyssa Baron also had 15 points, eight rebounds and six assists.

Crimson sophomore and Great Britain national team member Temi Fagbenle led the Crimson with 26 points and 12 rebounds. She only played 28 minutes, however, and the Quakers really took advantage when Fagbenle was off the floor.

After the Quakers stretched their lead to 15, Harvard stormed back, going on a 14-0 run shortly after Fagbenle reentered the game.

“As a team, I thought we did an excellent job closing the game out,” Ray said.

The Quakers capitalized against the Ivy League’s second-worst defense, putting together their most impressive offensive performance of the year.

The Red and Blue continued their run of strong starts, going into the break leading 34-31 behind 10 first-half points from Ray.

Penn’s defense came through huge against one of the Ivy League’s top scoring offenses, at one point forcing back-to-back shot clock violations in the first half.

SEE ALSO

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