HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Ursinus College women's basketball team finished on the short end of a Centennial Conference thriller at Haverford this evening, as the Fords made enough free throws down the stretch to hold on for a 52-50 victory.

Senior forward Caroline Shimrock tied a game high with 13 points and added eight rebounds for Ursinus (7-9, 6-4), which suffered its fourth straight loss. Fellow seniors Jessica Porada and Alyssa Polimeni netted 11 points each.

Olivia Walsh led Haverford (9-6, 4-4) with 13 points and Tori Hopkins chipped in 12, including the go-ahead 3-pointer with 3:43 to play. Samantha Wetzel paired ten points with seven rebounds and Sierra Berkel finished with nine points and a game-high 12 boards in a balanced effort for the Fords, who have made the conference playoffs each of the last four years.

Another slow start put the Bears in an early hole. Haverford scored the game's first seven points and led 14-2 after a triple by Walsh with two minutes to play in the opening frame. But Polimeni scored six points during an 8-0 spurt spanning the end of the quarter, bringing Ursinus within striking distance.

Trailing 24-21 at the break, the Red and Gold took their first lead on a basket by senior forward Elana Roadcloud that made it 27-26 early in the third. Clio Bodie buried a 3-pointer in retort, but a bucket by Porada and a trey from Polimeni made it 32-29 about midway through the frame.

The lead switched hands five times from there, Ursinus going in front one last time on a 3-pointer by junior guard Olivia Kane with 4:03 remaining. But Hopkins quelled the momentum with a huge answer, putting the Fords ahead 44-42. After the teams traded empty possessions, Bodie's jumper stretched the lead to four, and a free throw by Berkel made it 47-42 in the final minute.

Kane came up clutch again, burying a deep ball to bring Ursinus within a deuce with 53 seconds left, but the Fords hit three free throws to restore a five-point cushion. Shimrock made a 3-pointer to cut the margin to 50-48 with 32 ticks showing before Hopkins calmly knocked down a pair from the stripe, rendering Shimrock's buzzer-beating bucket moot.

Polimeni grabbed eight rebounds and handed out four assists for the Bears, who shot 33.3 percent from the floor (21 of 63) but committed a season-low six turnovers. Roadcloud corralled six caroms and equaled a career high with three blocks.

Ursinus is scheduled to welcome Washington College to Helfferich Hall on Saturday, January 23.