The quandary for the Binghamton women’s basketball team has been the same since last season ended: who was going to step up to replace the three senior leaders who graduated last year?

The season is still young but Rebecka Lindgren is starting to look like the answer.

The Bearcats (1-2) headed south this weekend to take part in the Florida Atlantic Tip-Off Classic, where they defeated Winthrop 53-40 on Friday, before falling to Akron, 55-44 on Saturday.

Lindgren was named tournament MVP after scoring 39 points over the course of the two games. The senior guard has now hit double figures in three consecutive games.

“Tonight was truly a breakout performance for Rebecka,” said head coach Rich Conover in a press release after Friday’s game which saw Lindgren put up a career high 27 points.

Lindgren’s performance against Winthrop was highlighted by seven three-pointers in 10 attempts. She also chipped in a team-high four assists. The 27 points is the most by a BU player since Laine Kurpniece chipped in 28 last November.

Despite Lindgren’s heroics, the game was tied at 33 early in the second half, but that was when the Bearcat defense clamped down, allowing the offense to go on a decisive 20-7 run over the game’s final 12 minutes.

Junior forward Juta Jahilo and sophomore forward Laura Franceski also had big games for the Bearcats, who earned their first victory of the season. Jahilo scored seven points and grabbed a game-high eight rebounds, while Franceski added six points and seven boards.

The result wasn’t as good for BU on Saturday, as Akron used a 10-2 run late in the first half to pull away, and the Bearcats never recovered.

The Zips (1-1) led 25-24 with 3:29 to play in the first half when they rattled off the run, highlighted by eight points from sophomore Nikki McCoy who capped off the rally with a three-pointer at the buzzer.

The Bearcats rallied in the second half, to come as close as six points but could never quite climb back into it as Akron held off the rally.

“It was a tale of two halves defensively,” Conover said. “I thought we played poor defense in the first half. We looked better in the second, but Akron did a good job in holding us off.”

Lindgren led the team with 12 points, and junior forward Brianna Thompson and junior guard Laura Sario each added nine points in the Saturday matchup.

The Bearcats return home to face Fairleigh Dickinson (1-2) on Wednesday at the Events Center. The Bearcats lost to the Knights last year, 75-64, on their home floor. FDU is coming off an 87-56 loss to Bowling Green at the UCF Tournament in Orlando. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.