SELINSGROVE, Pa. -- The Penn College women's basketball comeback effort fell just short, 43-38, to Saint Elizabeth in the second game of the Susquehanna Tip-Off Tournament on Sunday. The Wildcats drop to 1-4, while the Eagles move to 4-1.

How it happened: An Emily Pardee layup with 3:57 left on the clock moved the Wildcats within a one-score game (38-36), but it was the closest Penn College came to gaining a lead after erasing a 25-11 halftime deficit and a game-high 16-point lead the Eagles held at the 9:04 mark in the third quarter. 

The Wildcats out-scored the Eagles 15-5 in nine minutes in the third frame, fueled by Lexi Troup's trey and back-to-back baskets from Keeley Baker and Kayleigh Miller. Rachel Teats pulled the PCT deficit to single-digits with 1:29 left in the third on a fast-break layup while Pardee closed out the quarter with a pair of made free throws for a 32-26 score heading into the final 10 minutes. 

Penn College continued to chip away at the Saint Elizabeth lead in the fourth, but ran out of time to get past the Eagles. 

Inside the box: Pardee led the Wildcats with a team-high 12 points on 4-of-10 shooting and grabbing five rebounds. Teats finished with seven points and Lexi Troup had six. 

Destiny Battle led eight Eagles in the scoring column with 13 points. 

Up next: Penn College returns to Bardo Gym to host crosstown rival, Lycoming College on Tuesday night at 5 p.m.