Penn State Harrisburg 61, Lancaster Bible 58

Harrisburg Starters

Gordon, Amey, Butler, Kubalak Mahan

Lancaster Bible Starters

Iwais, Beers, Tilton, Via, Hickey

How It Happened

Penn State Harrisburg overcame a slow start and rallied to win a thrilling game over North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) opponent Lancaster Bible, 61-58.

The Lions (6-8, 4-1) offense struggled to find its rhythm in the first quarter, falling behind Lancaster Bible (3-11, 1-4) by 10 points. Kendis Butler got the offense going, knocking down a deep three-pointer. On the next possession, Anna Mahan followed by connecting on a three-pointer of her own, cutting the deficit to six points. Madison Hemler drove to the basket and scored her first points of the night to help keep the Lions within eight-points. Hemler would score a season high 14 points and pull in 14 rebounds. The Chargers would respond and closed the opening quarter on an 8-1 run, taking a 22-9 lead into the second quarter.

Sidney Gordon got the Lions offense started in the second quarter, knocking down a three-pointer. Mahan and Laurel Amey each added a layup as the Lions pulled back within eight-points. The Lions continue to battle back and after Jayla Galbreath knocked down a three-pointer, the Lions trailed 26-23. The Chargers would close the quarter on a 6-3 run and held a 32-26 lead at the half.

Harrisburg looked to continue to cut into the Chargers lead, with Amey finishing a layup to close back within three-points. Lancaster Bible's Alaysha Iwais answered right back knocking down a jump shot, part of career high 21 points. Butler would respond, draining her second three-pointer of the contest. Hemler would then tie the game at 36, finishing a layup with 5:48 remaining in the third quarter. The teams would trade baskets with the Lions finally capturing their first lead of the game off a Galbreath layup with 1:16 remaining in the quarter. Amey and Galbreath each knocked down three-pointers to close the quarter, giving Harrisburg a 50-46 lead heading to the final quarter.

Lancaster Bible battled back, pulling within a point two minutes into the final quarter. After the Chargers took a one-point lead on a Lizzy Tilton jump shot with 5:27 remaining, Amey answered right back with a layup. After a couple of lead changes, the Chargers tied the game at 56. Hemler would convert a pair of free throws to give Harrisburg a lead with 3:08 remaining in the game. The Chargers would not go away, tying the game at 58. Both teams had opportunities to take the lead, but neither could covert. Harrisburg had possession with 15 seconds to go and out of a timeout, the ball came to Butler. Butler drove from the wing to middle of the lane and lifted a left-handed layup that after bouncing around the rim and found the bottom of the net giving Harrisburg a two-point lead. The Chargers had an opportunity to tie the game, but could not convert a pair of free throws as the Lions would hold on for the 61-58 victory.

Inside the Numbers

- Madison Hemler had a season high 14 points while pulling down 14 rebounds

- Kendis Butler scored 11 points, none more important than her layup with 10 seconds to go to put the Lions ahead by two

- Jayla Galbreath added 11 points off the bench, connecting on both of her three-pointers

- The Lions got a boost from their bench, outscoring the Chargers bench 27-8

- Anna Mahan had a solid outing scoring nine points and collecting nine rebounds

- The Chargers held a slight edge on the glass, outrebounding the Lions 43-40

- Laurel Amey scored nine points

- Lancaster Bible's offensive attack was led by Alaysha Iwais who scored a career high 21 points

Who's Next?

The Lions will continue NEAC play when they travel to South Division foe Penn State Abington on Wednesday January 22 at 8:00 pm.  

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