NEWARK, Del. (Interstat) — In a gritty, defensive struggle that came down to the final possession, the George Washington Revolutionaries held off a furious second-half rally by Delaware to escape the Bob Carpenter Center with a 63-59 victory in nonconference women’s basketball Wednesday night.

The Revolutionaries, who led by as many as 14 points in the first half, saw their advantage evaporate completely in the third quarter before making enough critical plays in the final minutes to secure their third consecutive win and improve to 6-5. Delaware, which had won four of its last five, fell to 5-3.

The game’s defining sequence, and its most important part, unfolded in the final 11 seconds with George Washington clinging to a 61-59 lead. After Delaware’s Ande’a Cherisier scored on a driving layup to cut the deficit to two, the Blue Hens immediately fouled George Washington’s Gabby Reynolds with nine seconds remaining. The junior guard from Holland, Michigan, calmly sank both free throws to push the lead back to four.

Delaware had one last chance, inbounding the ball to Ella Wanzer for a potential game-tying three-pointer, but her attempt from the left wing missed everything as time expired, sealing the Revolutionaries’ hard-fought road win.

George Washington controlled the action early, using a 12-0 run spanning the end of the first quarter and start of the second to build a 29-13 advantage. The Revolutionaries’ defense was stifling, holding Delaware to just eight points in the second quarter and forcing 10 first-half turnovers. Sara Lewis, the 6-foot-1 sophomore from Atlanta, was instrumental in building the lead, scoring 11 of her game-high 22 points before halftime.

The complexion of the game changed dramatically after the break. The Blue Hens, energized by their home crowd of 733, opened the third quarter on a 20-8 run, finally drawing even at 41-41 on a Trinity Vance three-pointer with 39 seconds left in the period. Delaware’s star guard, Kailah Correa, spearheaded the comeback, scoring eight of her 18 points in the quarter and dishing out two of her four assists.

The fourth quarter featured five ties and three lead changes in a tense back-and-forth battle. With the score knotted at 55-55 and under three minutes to play, George Washington’s Kamari Sims hit the biggest shot of the night. The 6-1 forward from Severn, Maryland, drained a three-pointer from the top of the key off an assist from Mia James to put the Revolutionaries ahead for good at 58-55 with 1:34 remaining.

Sims finished with 16 points, while Reynolds added 12, including the decisive free throws and a key three-pointer earlier in the fourth. Lewis complemented her scoring with a strong all-around floor game, anchoring the defense with multiple rebounds and a crucial steal in the final two minutes.

For Delaware, Correa’s 18 points led the way, but she was hampered by seven turnovers. Cherisier, a 6-1 freshman from Baltimore, provided a vital spark off the bench with 11 points. The Blue Hens struggled from the perimeter all night, a key factor in their inability to complete the comeback.

George Washington’s victory defied the pregame analytics, as Interstat’s ELO system had projected Delaware with a 63.3 percent probability to win. The Revolutionaries’ win marks their first true road victory of the season after two earlier losses.

The game was a defensive contest throughout, with both teams shooting under 40 percent from the floor. George Washington’s ability to force 18 Delaware turnovers and convert them into 17 points proved to be a decisive margin in the low-scoring affair.

George Washington will look to extend its winning streak when it hosts American on Sunday. Delaware, meanwhile, will aim to regroup before a home game against La Salle next Wednesday.