ERIE, Pa. - The No. 16-ranked Gannon women's basketball team built a double-digit lead in the third quarter and closed out Lock Haven for a 58-46 win in PSAC crossover action at the Hammermill Center on Tuesday evening.
Delaney Dogan (West Middlesex, Pa./West Middlesex) and
Emma Wright (Fairview, Pa./Talawanda) led the Golden Knights with 20 and 14 points, respectively, in the win.
With the victory, Gannon improves 6-1 overall and 2-1 in league play. Lock Haven fell to 4-2 overall and 1-2 in PSAC play.
Trailing by two (20-18) with 3:10 remaining in the second quarter, Gannon ended the first half on a 10-2 scoring run and took a 28-22 lead into the locker room on Tuesday night. The 10-2 scoring run was sparked by 3-pointers from Dogan and Wright and a layup by
Boston McKinney (Bolivar, Ohio/Tuscarawas Valley) with just 27 seconds remaining in the half. Following a jumper by Lock Haven's Jaynelle Robinson with 14 seconds remaining, Wright beat the buzzer for Gannon with a putback jumper as time expired to give the Knights a six-point advantage.
In the third quarter it was all Gannon, as the Knights shot nearly 54 percent from the field and outscored the Bald Eagles by a 17-6 margin in the quarter. Dogan scored six points in the quarter while
Ali Benim (Erie, Pa./Harbor Creek) chipped in five off the bench.
Defensively, Gannon limited Lock Haven to just 3-of-12 from the field in the third quarter as Gannon opened up a 45-28 lead with just 10 minutes remaining.
The visitors wouldn't go away quietly though, as Lock Haven outscored Gannon 15-4 in the opening 4:16 of the fourth quarter to pull within six at 49-43. LHU's Ahnera Parker sparked the rally with nine-straight points during the stretch.
However, the Knights held the Bald Eagles scoreless for the next three and a half minutes and ended the game on a 9-3 run to close out the win. Dogan and
Samantha Pirosko (Eastlake, Ohio/Eastlake North) combined to score Gannon's final nine points of the game.
Dogan shot 8-of-12 from the field in her 20-point scoring performance and also added four rebounds and two blocked shots. Wright went 6-of-13 from the field to score her 14 points and also added six rebounds and four assists. Gannon also got seven points from Benim, six points and seven rebounds from Pirosko, and five points, five assists and three steals from
Sydney Mitchell (Halethorpe, Md./Seton Keough).
Boston McKinney (Bolivar, Ohio/Tuscarawas Valley) also passed out five assists and tallied a team-high five steals.
Parker recorded a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds to lead Lock Haven. The Bald Eagles also got 10 points from Brooke Lawyer and seven from Robinson.
Gannon shot 40 percent (24-of-60) from the field, but just 5-of-24 from three (20.8%). LHU finished the game by shooting just under 38 percent (20-of-53) from the floor.
Gannon scored 36 points in the paint, 18 points off turnovers and passed out 17 assists on 24 made baskets in the win. The Knights forced 20 turnovers and recorded 11 steals in an impressive defensive performance.
Gannon remains at home to host Mansfield on Saturday afternoon at the Hammermill Center. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m.
