BROOKLYN, N.Y. — The LIU women's basketball team welcomed Merrimack to the Steinberg Wellness Center on Saturday afternoon.

The Sharks came out of the gate firing, leading by eight at half. The lead seemed to wake up the Warriors, however as that halftime lead quickly disappeared and turned into a Merrimack lead. The Warriors led by as much as five in the fourth but LIU kept fighting, regaining the lead with a bit over two minutes to play.

The game was back and forth from there as both teams led in the dying minutes. Ashley Austin hit a game-tying three with 22 seconds left but Merrimack responded and hit a game-winning layup with four seconds to play. The Sharks fell 61-59.

Mariah Elohim scored a team-high 21 points and shared the lead for assists (three) and steals (two_ with Ashley Austin, who scored 17.

Janessa Williams led the Sharks with seven rebounds and scored nine. 

Amaya Dowdy had a team-high five blocks. 

The Sharks return to the court on Thursday when they travel to Le Moyne at 7 p.m.