MORRISVILLE, N.Y. - In a game that came down to the wire, Penn State Harrisburg's women's basketball team was edged 59-54 by conference foe SUNY Morrisville on the final day of a two-game road trip to New York on Saturday afternoon, Jan. 29.  

HOW IT HAPPENED 

Penn State Harrisburg (11-6, 6-3 United East) had a chance to steal a valuable United East road win but Morrisville (10-6, 6-2 United East) did what it had to in the final three minutes to erase a narrow deficit and escape with a slim victory on Saturday evening.  

Kendis Butler netted a game-high 16 points, including eight in the fourth quarter, to lead the way. Anna Mahan finished with seven points and seven rebounds, while Alli Walton added seven points and six boards off the bench. Giahny Correa had six points in a reserve role and Jenna Montana grabbed 11 rebounds. 

With the Lions trailing 48-42 early in the final frame, Butler came to life. She converted a pair of free throws and hit a jumper to cut the deficit to three with 7:12 remaining. Montana added a foul shot and Butler tied it up with a driving layup at the 5:27 mark.  

After the Mustangs retook the lead, Mahan knotted things up with a layup before giving the visitors a one-point lead thanks to a free throw with 3:36 left to play. After getting a stop on the defensive end, the Blue & White extended the lead to 54-51 with 2:57 remaining when Butler buried a pair from the charity stripe.  

Unfortunately for the Lions, they were unable to hang on, as the home team took advantage of some rough shooting and turnovers from Penn State Harrisburg down the stretch, hitting a pair of free throws and using a layup in transition to climb back in front. Two more foul shots for Morrisville made it 57-54 with 32 seconds remaining and following a timeout, the Blue & White were unable to get a good look at the equalizer in the closing moments.  

The visitors used a strong second quarter to pull ahead by as many as eight points but were unable to push the lead to double digits before the break. The Lions led by as many as nine early in the third quarter following a Butler corner 3-ball and a Mahan layup but again they were unable to capitalize and stretch the advantage to double digits. Instead, the Mustangs closed out the third on a 22-9 run. 

NOTABLES 

- Both teams struggled shooting, with the Lions shooting 30.2 percent from the floor and Morrisville shooting 28.8 percent from the field. 

- Both squads also struggled from beyond the arc, with the Blue & White shooting just 13 percent from deep and the Mustangs shooting 10.7 percent from distance. 

- Penn State Harrisburg got to the foul line 25 times and Morrisville got to the stripe 27 times.   

- Turnovers hurt the Lions, as the Mustangs scored 24 points off Blue & White miscues.   

- The visitors won the rebounding battle 40-28. 

- Kendis Butler scored a game-high 16 points, including eight in the final frame. She was a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line.   

- Anna Mahan finished with seven points and seven rebounds.   

- Alli Walton added seven points and six boards off the bench.  

- Giahny Correa chipped in with six points and two steals in a reserve role.   

- Jenna Montana pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds to go along with four points and a pair of steals.  

- Jayla Galbreath added five points, four boards, and two assists.  

- Rachel Veira led the way for Morrisville with a team-high 14 points, seven rebounds, and six steals.  

WHO'S NEXT? 

The Lions return to action when they travel to St. Mary's (Md.) for another United East contest on Tuesday night, Feb. 1. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. 

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