THE RUNDOWNScore: Gannon 65, at Mercyhurst 62
Records: Gannon 12-5, 10-3 PSAC | Mercyhurst 9-10, 7-6 PSAC
Location: Erie, Pa. – Mercyhurst Athletic Center
The Short Story: The Gannon women's basketball defeated crosstown rival Mercyhurst, 65-62, in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division game Wednesday evening.
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Click HereHOW IT HAPPENED:- Sophomore McKenna Shives put Gannon on the scoreboard first, as she sank the opening three-pointer.
- Mercyhurst responded with a three-pointer from Jalin Steel at the 8:01 mark of the first quarter.
- The Lakers jumped out to a five-point lead, 15-10, with 1:32 left in the quarter off an Angela Heintz jumper.
- Senior Morgan Neighbors responded, with her own jumper, pulling the Lady Knights within three, 15-12, with 1:08 remaining.
- Adrienne Kloecker sank a three-pointer at the 8:34 mark of the second quarter to give the Lakers an 18-12 lead.
- Senior Jennie Thies sank both free throws to pull the Lady Knights within two, 18-16.
- Trailing 25-21, the Lady Knights scored back-to-back buckets to tie the game, 25-25, with 1:01 left in the second.
- Gannon went into the locker room trailing, 27-25, as Heintz sank a lay-up in the final seconds of the second quarter.
- Shives again sank a three-pointer that would pull the Lady Knights within one, 29-28, with 9:07 left in the third quarter. The Lakers responded going on a 7-2 run to take a nine point lead, 39-30 with 5:19 left in the quarter.
- Gannon closed the quarter going on an 8-3 run to trail the Lakers, 42-38 at the end of the third.
- Neighbors again pulled the Lady Knights within one, 44-43, of the Lakers, hitting a three-pointer in the first six seconds of the fourth quarter, 8:54.
- A Shives three-pointer then tied the game, 46-46, with 7:31 left in the game.
- The Lady Knights went on a 10-0 to take a 56-46 lead with 5:18 remaining in the game.
- With 33 seconds remaining in the game Gannon called a 30-second timeout, as they led 62-59.
- The Lakers pulled within two points, 64-62, as Steel sank both free throws off a Neighbors technical foul.
- Jessica Bell sent Thies to the free throw line with eight seconds remaining in the game, as they Lady Knights went on for the 65-62 victory.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:- Gannon snapped a two-game losing streak and with the victory they have defeated Mercyhurst for the ninth consecutive time.
- Neighbors currently ranks 33rd all-time at Gannon with 870 points and eighth in three-point field goals (154).
- While Thies ranks 16th all-time with 544 rebounds in her four-years at Gannon.
- Neighbors led in scoring on both sides with a game-high 26 points and were 2-of-2 from the three-point line.
- Shives chipped in with 16 points, while Thies added nine points and nine rebounds.
- Gannon was shooting 39.6 percent (19-48) from the field, was 80.8 percent (21-26) from the free throw line and was 42.9 percent (19-48) from the three-point line.
- Mercyhurst was led by Angela Heintz with 18 points, while Emilee Norris tallied 10 rebounds and four points. Jalin Steel chipped in with 11 points and three steals.
- The Lakers shot 37.1 percent (23-62) from the field, 37.9 percent (11-29) from beyond the arc and were 45.5 percent (5-11) from the free throw line.
UP NEXT:- Gannon returns to the Hammermill Center this Saturday, January 23 when they host Slippery Rock in a PSAC Western Division game.
- Tip-off is slated for a 1 p.m. start.
- The Lady Knights will host their annual PinkZone game and admissions to this game is FREE for fans.