Arlington, VA - The Penn State Harrisburg Women's Basketball team went on the road to face CAC undefeated Marymount with something to prove. The Lions fresh off their first conference win Saturday, knew they could compete and play spoiler. For 35 minutes, the Lions put Marymount on their heels, staying within 4, if not leading. Not until the Lions were forced to foul late in the game did the Saints escape the upset 46-63.
Penn State Harrisburg 46 vs. Marymount 63
Penn State Harrisburg Starters: Shanique Mattis, Laurel Amey, Tessa Dolce, Briana Davis, Janel Brown
Marymount Starters: Hurst, Lohr, Haddad, McQueen, Viscuso
Records:
Penn State Harrisburg: (6-10, 1-8)
Marymount: (14-2, 9-0)
Inside The Stats:
Field Goals: Penn State Harrisburg (15-51) vs. Marymount (25-67)
Assists: Harrisburg (8) vs. Marymount (15)
Turnovers: Harrisburg (22) vs. Marymount (5)
Rebounds: Harrisburg (46) vs. Marymount (37)
How it Happened: The blue and white opened up the game with a lead thanks to two early threes by Briana Davis and solid post play from Tessa Dolce. Harrisburg exchanged possessions with Marymount and ended the first quarter in a draw 12-12.
Marymount showed why they entered the game undefeated in Capital Athletic Conference play and went on an 8-1 run in the first 4 minutes of the second quarter. The Nittany Lions prevented the run from expanding with a resourceful timeout. Neither team would score in the next 3 minutes, but the Lions played aggressive and were able to draw fouls from the Saints' starters. The Lions fought back at the end of the quarter to close the margin to 4, 18-22 at the half.
The Lions then went toe to toe with the conference leaders for much of the 3rd quarter, cutting the lead to less than 4 on multiple occasions. Late in the quarter, Marymount made a pair of tough angle threes to put the pressure on Harrisburg. They would respond however, with a long range three from Janel Brown and a buzzer beater tip-in from Shanique Mattis to bring the Lions within 7 at the end of the 3rd.
Marymount would extend their lead early in the 4th to 11, but that wouldn't detour the Lions pride. The ladies would continue to fight and cut the lead to 5 shortly after. Marymount would eventually turn up the heat by making key shots and forcing the Lions to foul on each possession. Marymount would make their shots and built up their lead to eventual double digits; ending the game 46-63. The final score would not be indicative of the play or fight of the blue and white through the 40-minute game.
Impact Performance: Tessa Dolce 11 points, 14 rebounds
What's Next: The Lions return home on Saturday, January 20th to begin the second half of Capital Athletic Conference play against Salisbury University. Game time at the CUB, set for 1pm.