Middletown, PA – The Lady Lions came out firing taking an early lead over the visiting Southern Virginia Knights on Saturday November 25th. The Knights were able to regroup and keep a double-digit lead for most of the second and third quarters before the Lions battled in the game's final minutes. Harrisburg worked the lead down to only two points in the final minute, but Southern Virginia made their free throws down the stretch to hold on for the 83-78 win.
Southern Virginia 83 vs Penn State Harrisburg 78
Penn State Harrisburg Starters:
Mattis, Payne, Amey, Dolce, Brown
Southern Virginia Starters:
Stout, Gambee, Barnes, Garrish, Winsor
Records:
Penn State Harrisburg: 1-4
Southern Virginia: 4-0
Inside The Stats:
Field Goals: Penn State Harrisburg (31-68) vs. Southern Virginia (28-66)
Assists: Harrisburg (14) vs. Southern Virginia (13)
Turnovers: Harrisburg (24) vs. Southern Virginia (16)
Rebounds: Harrisburg (44) vs. Southern Virginia (36)
How it happened:
The Lions led in the first quarter, starting the game with a 5-0 run. Unfortunately, for Harrisburg, the Knights followed up with their own 14-0 run closing out the first quarter ahead 25-17. Both teams battled evenly throughout most of the next two quarters with Southern Virginia stretching their lead to 11 going into the final quarter.
With just 2:29 to go, Harrisburg was down ten, but showed tremendous spirit along with some hard working defensive plays to find a way back. Briana Davis and Tessa Dolce combined for 11 points in the final two minutes to put the Lions within two points with just 15 seconds to play. The Lions were forced to foul and Southern Virginia was clutch from the line to hold on for the exciting win.
Impact Performance:
Shanique Mattis – 19 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds
Laurel Amey – 18 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists
Tessa Dolce – 18 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals
Coach Thoughts: Head Coach Ross Patrick
"Last year we graduated a lot of game experience and this year we have had different people stepping into different roles. The growth in those roles is a process and in order to achieve success you sometimes have to experience failure, but the resiliency of the team this week and willingness to keep grinding is something I really admire about this group... We need to get better in some areas, but proud of this groups effort today!"
What's Next:
The Lions will travel to face off against the Frostburg St. Bobcats on Wednesday November 29th. Tip-off is set for 6:00 pm.