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DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. -- In its second game of the 2014 Land of Magic Classic, hosted by Embry-Riddle, Nazareth defeated Wesleyan 67-65 in a non-conference women's basketball game on Monday afternoon. Senior Hannah Runyon delivered the game-winning basket with only four seconds to play in regulation to give the Golden Flyers the victory. The Cardinals had a last-second shot attempt but were unable to convert. Junior Sam Sorge amassed a career-high 23 points on 7-14 shooting from the field, and she made 6-8 free throws to lead Nazareth in scoring. Her previous scoring high was 17 points. Classmate Veronica Peck fell one point shy of tying her career-high in points as she finished with 17 points as she hit 6-9 field goals, including 4-5 from outside the arc.

With the victory, the Golden Flyers even their overall record at 4-4. Following the loss, Wesleyan drops to 3-5 overall.

The second half had six lead changes, and neither team had more than a four-point lead in the final 10 minutes. The Cardinals claimed an eight-point lead, 49-41, following a three-pointer by Danielle Gervacio with just over 12 minutes to play. Nazareth cut into its deficit with a free throw by Sorge and a layup from junior Lindsey Kelly. After Wesleyan answered with a two-point jumper, Peck connected on a three to bring the Golden Flyers to within four points, 51-47.

The Golden Flyers continued its scoring run with nine of the next 11 points to claim a 56-53 lead with 5:36 left in regulation. Sorge made a pair of shots from the free throw line, which was followed by a layup from Kelly, and another three from Peck. Runyon capped the run with two more free throws from the charity stripe. Sorge gave Nazareth a four-point lead, which was its largest lead since the opening minutes of the second period, when she converted a three-point play with 3:09 remaining.

With one minute to play, Wesleyan's Cherkira Lashley gave the Cardinals a temporary lead, 64-63, after connecting on two layups in a 43-second span. Sorge responded with a layup on the Golden Flyers' next possession. After the Cardinals managed to make only 1 of 2 free throws with 28 seconds to play, Nazareth took the lead for good on Runyon's layup in the final seconds.

The teams traded baskets to open the first half, with the game staying within four points through the opening 10 minutes. The Golden Flyers stretched a 15-14 edge into 28-17 advantage with a 13-3 scoring run that spanned almost five minutes. Sorge scored the first 11 points of the run as she converted a pair of free throws then buried three shots from outside the arc. Peck capped the run with a layup to give Nazareth its largest lead of the game. Wesleyan closed the Golden Flyers' lead to 33-29 at the break.

Sorge and Peck each had 11 points in the first half as they combined to make 7-12 field goals, including 5-6 on their three-point attempts. Kelly also finished in double-digits with 14 points. Runyon and junior Julia Brew added eight points and five points, respectively. In addition to her 23 points, Sorge recorded a game-high five assists to set up additional scoring opportunities. Kelly grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.

Wesleyan scored 18 points off Nazareth's 20 turnovers to stay in the game. The Cardinals committed only seven turnovers.

Nazareth is in action again on January 4th when the Golden Flyers travel to Oswego before opening its Empire 8 Conference schedule at Houghton on the 6th. The Golden Flyers return to Nazareth for conference games against Hartwick and Stevens on the 9th and 10th, respectively.