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HAMBURG, N.Y. -- Visiting Nazareth used a strong fourth-quarter effort to rally past Hilbert for a 71-59 women's basketball victory over the Hawks Monday in non-conference action.

Senior Samantha Peebles scored 10 of her game-high 22 points in the fourth quarter and sophomore Demetria Woodard added all nine of her points in the final 10 minutes as Nazareth outscored Hilbert 27-11 to come back for the victory. Nazareth improved to 4-6 overall, while Hilbert dropped to 7-5. The Golden Flyers resume their Empire 8 Conference schedule this weekend with a pair of home games. Nazareth hosts Alfred Friday at 8 p.m. and Houghton Saturday at 4.

Nazareth led 38-32 at halftime, then suffered through a rough third quarter by being outscored 16-6 to fall behind 48-44 going into the fourth.

Still trailing 51-47 early in the quarter, Nazareth got two baskets and a free throw from Woodard to regain the lead for good at 52-51 with 7:19 left. Sophomore Rachel Benedict had eight of her 16 points in the fourth quarter, including a three-pointer on Nazareth's next possession to push the lead to 55-51. Peebles added a pair of free throws and a three-pointer and Woodard added another basket as the Golden Flyers' lead continued to grow, reaching 62-53 with 2:25 left.

After that, the Golden Flyers paraded to the free-throw line to preserve the win. Peebles took advantage of a pair of technical fouls on the Hilbert bench to sink 5-of-6 free throws and Benedict went 4-for-4 in the final minute.

Benedict finished with a game-high 11 rebounds and passed for four assists to go with her 16 points. Peebles went 3-for-5 from three-point range and grabbed eight rebounds. Sophomore Lizzie Straub played all 40 minutes and scored 12 points with all three of her field goals coming from three-point range. Eleven of her points came in the first half when Nazareth was pulling ahead. Nazareth made just two baskets in the third quarter to help Hilbert rally, setting the stage for a dramatic fourth quarter.