THE BASICS
Score: Gannon 79, at Clarion 44
Records: Gannon (16-6, 15-4 PSAC), Clarion (2-21, 1-17 PSAC)
Location: Clarion, Pa.  |  Tippin Gymnasium
The Short Story: The Gannon women's basketball team snapped a two-game skid in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division action following a 79-44 victory over host Clarion Wednesday evening at the Tippin Gymnasium. The Lady Knights relied on early first-half runs to capture the road win with five Lady Knights scoring double figures. GU's scoring attack was led by senior Mollie Sebald (Broadview Heights, Ohio/Holy Name) with 16 points followed by seniors Brittany Batts (Leesburg, Va./Loudoun County) and Nettie Blake (Jersey City, N.J./Marist) with 13 points each. Freshman McKenna Shives (Struthers, Ohio/Struthers) established career-highs of 11 points and five rebounds and redshirt sophomore Lanise Saunders (Pittsburgh, Pa./Taylor Allderdice) matched a career-best 10 points.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Gannon and Clarion exchanged baskets on each team's first possession before the Golden Eagles converted on a missed Lady Knight attempt to capture their first and only lead of the game, 4-2.
- A layup by Blake followed by a three from Batts opened the Lady Knights' 13-0 run to take a 15-4 lead with 13:14 remaining in the half. Blake scored six of the points in the run, as the Golden Eagles went 0-for-6 from the floor to give way to the Lady Knights' stretch.
- Back-to-back threes from Clarion led to the Lady Knights answering with 10 straight points for a 25-10 advantage capped on a three from Shives with under 10 minutes left in the opening half.
- Gannon relied on another run late in the first half to distance itself from Clarion. This time around, the Lady Knights capitalized on a 13-2 stretch to take a 38-14 lead with 2:08 left in the half. Shives tallied five of GU's points including her second three of the evening. The Golden Eagles only connected on one of seven attempts while turning the ball over four times.
- Following a time-expiring layup to close the first half, the Golden Eagles scored consecutive baskets to open the new half. The Lady Knights missed on their first two second-half attempts before erupting on a 14-2 run to take a commanding 56-25 lead with under 12 minutes left. During the stretch, the Lady Knights hit three straight long-range attempts from Batts, Sebald and junior Morgan Neighbors (Westerville, Ohio/Westerville South).
- Shives opened another run by the Lady Knights with her third three, as GU outscored the Golden Eagles by a margin of 14-2 to extend their lead to 72-33 with 3:46 remaining. In the closing minutes, the Golden Eagles scored 11 of the final 18 points in the closing minutes, as the Lady Knights captured the 79-44 victory.
 
GAME NOTES
- Sebald doubled her point total from the first half to lead Gannon with 16 points in 24 minutes. She added three rebounds and two steals. The senior went a perfect 2-for-2 from beyond the arc and 4-for-4 at the foul line.
- Batts and Blake each scored 13 points in the win. Batts matched a career-high five assists in 26 minutes. Blake recorded a team-high seven rebounds. She connected on 4-of-6 attempts from the floor in just 16 minutes of action.
- Shives established career-highs of 11 points and five rebounds in 26 minutes. Saunders matched a career-best 10 points, while coming within one minute of her personal-high with 14 minutes. Saunders went an impressive 4-for-5 from the field. She added a block and tied a career-high with an assist.
- The Lady Knights dominated the Golden Eagles on the glass with a 42-25 rebound advantage. Five Lady Knights recorded five or more rebounds led by Blake with seven boards. The Lady Knights surrendered their lowest total rebounds (25).  
- Delrika Jones-Carey led Clarion with 12 points.
- Gannon shot 50 percent (28-56) from the field and 47.4 percent (9-19) beyond the arc. It marked the team's best shooting-performance in both categories since Jan. 22, against No. 24 California (Pa.). The Golden Eagles finished the day at 35.4 percent (17-48) from the floor and 44.4 percent (4-9) from outside.
 
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- In the all-time series, Gannon moved to 33-14 against Clarion. The Lady Knights have won 16 consecutive games against the Golden Eagles, 14 of the games by 14 or more points. The win marked GU's eighth straight on the road at the Tippin Gymnasium.
- Since joining the PSAC in the 2008-09 season, Gannon remains unbeaten against Clarion as conference opponents. GU has swept all seven regular-season series.
- Earlier in the season, then-No. 25 Gannon relied on a team effort with 10 of 12 Lady Knights contributing in a 72-45 win over Clarion Dec. 3, at the Hammermill Center. The lead never changed hands in the contest.
- GU moved to 14-0 this season when leading at the half.
- For both Gannon head coach Jim Brunelli and assistant coach Mike Whitling, it marked a return to their alma mater. After obtaining his bachelor's degree in 1996 from Clarion, Brunelli began his coaching career with the Golden Eagles as a graduate assistant from 1998-2000. Whitling also received his start in the coaching ranks at Clarion, serving as a graduate assistant from 2005-08.
- The Lady Knights improved to 7-1 on Wednesdays.
 
UP NEXT
Gannon hosts PSAC Western Division opponent Pitt-Johnstown Feb. 14, at the Hammermill Center in the annual Hall of Fame game. The tip is set for 1 p.m. Among those to be honored in this year's class is former Lady Knight Kelly Moyer '92, '98M.