Video Highlights and Interviews

THE BASICS
Score: at Gannon 71, No. 24 California (Pa.) 63
Records: Gannon (12-4, 11-2 PSAC), California (Pa.) (14-3, 11-2 PSAC)
Location: Erie, Pa.  |  Hammermill Center
The Short Story: The Gannon women's basketball team defeated No. 24 California (Pa.), 71-63, Thursday evening at the Hammermill Center in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division action. Beyond the outcome, both teams played with heavy hearts. The game marked the first for the Vulcans since the loss of senior Shanice Clark, who passed away last weekend. The Lady Knights captured their fifth straight victory and eighth consecutive win at the Hammermill Center this season.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
- In the opening 2:24 of the first half, Gannon captured a 7-1 lead over visiting No. 24 California (Pa.). A layup and a jumper by senior Candice Hendricks (Randallstown, Md./McDonogh) sandwiched a three from junior Amanda Berchtold (Erie, Pa./ Mercyhurst Prep) during the run. The Vulcans' lone point came off a free throw, as the visitors went 0-3 to open the contest.
- Holding a 17-14 lead with 6:54 left in the opening stanza, the Lady Knights scored eight-unanswered points. Senior Nettie Blake (Jersey City, N.J./Marist) accounted for six of the Lady Knights' points during the run to take a 25-14 lead.
- The Vulcans managed to pull within five of the Lady Knights, 25-20, with 3:18 left. On a technical foul issued to the Lady Knights' bench, the Vulcans capitalized the opportunity into a four-point play followed by a layup from Seairra Barrett.
- The Lady Knights answered right back with an 11-3 run to close the opening half for a 36-23 lead. Back-to-back threes from senior Mollie Sebald (Broadview Heights, Ohio/Holy Name) and Berchtold opened GU's scoring stretch.
- A three from Sebald in the opening 1:48 of the second half extended the Lady Knights' lead to 43-27. The Vulcans held the Lady Knights scoreless in the next 5:07 to erase the deficit to five points, 43-38. During the stretch, GU gave the ball away eight times and only had two attempts from the field.
- The Lady Knights were able to halt the Vulcans' rally before taking off on a 13-4 run. The Lady Knights' run was capped by a three from Hendricks with 8:37 remaining for a 56-42 GU advantage.
- Cal came fighting back once again with another comeback attempt. Capitalizing on four Lady Knight turnovers, the Vulcans' scored 13 unanswered points to pull within one, 56-55, with 4:31 remaining.
- The Vulcans were unable to finish the rally, as the Lady Knights pulled away in the remaining time. Holding a 60-57 lead, the Lady Knights scored seven straight to push their lead to 67-57.
- The Vulcans' will to fight provided them a final rally attempt with under a minute left. Capped by a three from Emma Mahady, the Vulcans scored six straight to move to within four, 67-63, with 23 seconds left. Consecutive visits to the foul line by Neighbors and junior Jennie Thies (Lakewood, N.Y./Southwestern) sealed the 71-63 victory.  
 
GAME NOTES
- Four Lady Knights finished the day with double figures.
- Blake led the Lady Knights with 19 points and nine rebounds in 31 minutes. She connected on 6-of-9 field goal attempts and 7-of-9 from the foul line. Blake has compiled 890 career rebounds. She needs two more to move into fourth place ahead of Brittany Tabron on the program's all-time career leader list.  
- Neighbors and Sebald each scored 14 points. All of Neighbors' points came in the second half, which tied her season-high.
- Sebald also registered five rebounds, two steals, a block and three assists, to tie a season high.
- Hendricks matched a season-high 12 points in a career-best 29 minutes. She converted 5-of-6 opportunities from the floor. The senior added four rebounds, an assist and a steal.
- Three Vulcans scored in the double figures. The team was led by Emma Mahady with 17 points followed by Miki Glenn with 14 points and Seairra Barrett with 13 points. Glenn went 12-for-13 from the foul line, but only converted 1-of-8 attempts from the floor.
- In the first half, the Vulcans held a 13-0 advantage in bench points.
- The Lady Knights were able to capture the win despite registering 28 turnovers compared to the Vulcans' 18.
- At the glass, the Lady Knights held a 36-31 rebound advantage. Both Blake and Cal's Barrett shared the game-high with nine boards.
- Berchtold pulled down five rebounds and scored eight points including a pair of threes. She registered a team-high eight assists coming within one of her career high.
- The Lady Knights shot 52.4-percent (22-42) from the floor. It marked the second time this season that the Lady Knights shot above 50-percent. The Vulcans finished the game at 35-percent (21-60) from the field. The visiting squad only connected on 6.3-percent (1-16) of their long-range opportunities.
 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- California (Pa.) mourned the loss of senior Shanice Clark, who passed away Jan. 18. Redshirting this season, Clark appeared in 24 games for the Vulcans last season after transferring from Santa Fe College. (Fla.). In remembrance of Clark, the entire team and coaching staff wore t-shirts with her No. 44 on the back.
- Gannon improved to 19-14 in the all-time series against California (Pa.). The Lady Knights have won six straight against the Vulcans, including eight of their last nine meetings. At the Hammermill Center, the Lady Knights pushed their record to 15-2 against Cal and have won seven consecutive meetings.
- The Vulcans entered the game ranked 24th in the USA Today Sports Top 25 Coaches Poll. For the fifth consecutive week, Cal appeared in the national poll.
- The Lady Knights ended the Vulcans' three-game win streak, who ranked fourth in the PSAC in scoring offense (73.7) and scoring defense (60.8).
- Entering as the top-ranked team in turnover margin (7.94) and steals per game (11.81), the Vulcans recorded a margin of 10 and forced 28 GU turnovers.
- For the third consecutive season, the Lady Knights opened a campaign with eight consecutive victories at the Hammermill Center. The team has won nine straight games at the Mill dating back to last season's regular-season home finale.
- The Lady Knights improved to 2-0 against nationally-ranked opponents this season. When leading at the half, the Maroon and Gold moved to 10-0.
- Cal is currently ranked first in the Division II Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA) Atlantic Region Media Poll, while the Lady Knights hold the fourth spot.
 
UP NEXT
Gannon returns to divisional action with a trip to Seton Hill Jan. 24. The game is set to tipoff at 1 p.m., as part of a conference doubleheader.