VESTAL, N.Y. — Athina Lexa came off the bench and turned in a game-high 21-point performance, leading Canisius (4-3) to a 71-64 victory over Binghamton (2-8) in a non-conference women's basketball game on Friday evening at Dr. Bai Lee Court at the Events Center. The game marked the start of a stretch that includes six out of seven games at home for the Bearcats.

Lexa, who was one of three Golden Griff players to reach double figures in scoring, shot 8-of-12 from the field. She also made five of her seven three-point field goal shots. As a team, Canisius shot 62.5 percent from beyond the three-point arc, hitting 15 of its 24 attempts.

Sisi Eleko posted a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Mackenzie Amalia, meanwhile, finished with 13 points and dished out four assists. 

Redshirt sophomore guard Ella Wanzer led the Bearcats with 18 points. She was 4-of-6 from three-point range and made both of her free throw attempts. For the season, Wanzer leads the Bearcats with 13.3 points per game and is shooting 41.8 percent from three-point range (33-of-79).

A pair of freshmen reached their career highs in scoring against Canisius. Freshman guard Bella Pucci and freshman forward Kendall Bennett scored 11 points and nine points respectively. Pucci also added a career-high five rebounds.

Redshirt sophomore Jadyn Weltz dished out a season-high 10 rebounds to go along with six points, five rebounds and a pair of steals. It marked the second time in her career that she has reached double figures in assists and her performance ties for the eighth-best single-game total in program history.

Against the Golden Griffs, Binghamton closed the second period strong, going on a 15-2 run over the final 4:27 to take a 32-30 lead at the half. Five different Bearcat players scored during that stretch. 

Canisius turned the game around in the third period with a 13-2 run in a span of 4:33 to take a  46-36 lead. Lexa scored seven points during that span.

Binghamton tried to shift the tide of the game in their favor in the final period, going on an 11-0 run in the opening 3:50 to close to within 56-55. The teams then continued to trade baskets until Grace Heeps scored six straight points in a span of 1:45 for Canisius, which extended its lead to 70-62 with 13 seconds remaining.

The Bearcats held a strong 34-16 lead in points in the paint. The decisive factor of the game, however, proved to be three-point field goals. Canisius netted 30 points from beyond the three-point arc compared to Binghamton's 16 points.

The Bearcats host Coppin State on Dec. 17 at 2 p.m.

NOTES: Weltz's career high of 12 assists came against UMBC on Feb. 1, 2023. For the season, she is averaging a conference-best 5.0 assists per game … Wanzer now has 111 three-point field goals and ranks third all-time in program history with a .395 three-point field goal percentage (111-of-281) … Pucci is the second Binghamton freshman to reach double figures in scoring this year. Fellow freshman guard Kaylee Krysztof has reached double figures twice.