Cleve Wright meets with Gannon players on the sideline.
Jeff Kirik

Women's Basketball Bob Shreve, Assistant Director of Athletics Media Relations

No. 14 Golden Knights Look to Continue Dominance over Clarion

RV/No. 14 GANNON GOLDEN KNIGHTS (17-2, 9-2 PSAC West) at CLARION GOLDEN EAGLES (3-13, 3-8 PSAC West)
DATE/TIME: Monday, January 23, 2023 | 5:30 p.m.
ARENA/LOCATION: Waldo S. Tippin Gymnasium l Clarion, Pa.
LIVE VIDEO
LIVE STATS

RADIO:  Gannon basketball fans can catch all of the exciting action of Golden Knights' basketball on 90.5 WERG FM. Trevor Kubeja will have the call of the game.
TICKETS: Gannon is now accepting credit and debit cards for admission into basketball games. Tickets are priced at $15 for plush seats, $5 for adults and $3 for senior citizens and students. Gannon students with a valid ID receive free admission.
 
THE GANNON-CLARION ALL-TIME SERIES
Gannon leads 46-15
Gannon has won the last 11 meetings with Clarion and 29 of the last 30 meetings. The Golden Knights swept the season series last year with an 81-50 decision over the Golden Eagles on January 26, followed by a 71-58 triumph at Clarion on February 16.
 
The Last Meeting
February 16, 2022 -- Gannon 71, at Clarion 58 I RECAP
Gannon posted its seven 20-win season under Cleve Wright thanks to a 71-58 win at Clarion. Unlike the first meeting of the year which saw the Golden Knights use an early 23-0 run to coast to victory, Gannon trailed by as many as nine points early in the second quarter at 24-15 and still trailed at the half by a point at 35-34. Gannon gained the lead with just under three minutes left in the third quarter on a bucket by Samantha Pirosko (Eastlake, Ohio/Eastlake North) and led 53-50 with ten minutes remaining. They then opened the fourth quarter with eight straight points, with Delaney Dogan (West Middlesex, Pa./West Middlesex) taking part in each one, as the lead grew to 61-50 with 6:18 showing. Dogan scored six of the points and assisted on the other basket. Clarion would break the run on a 3-pointer, but Gannon proceeded to build the lead to as much as 14 points. All told, Gannon outscored Clarion 18-8 in the final stanza while holding an opponent under 60 points for the 14th time. Pirosko led three Golden Knights in double figures with 20 points, making 8-of-15 field goals and going 3-for-3 at the line, while pulling down seven rebounds. Sydney Mitchell (Halethorpe, Md./Seton Keough) scored a season-high 18 points, making 4-of-8 3-pointers, along with eight rebounds. Dogan finished with 10 points and a pair of blocked shots. Gannon dominated the glass, outrebounding the Golden Eagles 48-24. That included 14 offensive rebounds while limiting Clarion to just three second chances. Clarion was limited to 34.5 percent from the floor (19-of-55), although the Golden Eagles would make 10 of 25 3-pointers. Clarion's Cory Santoro led all scorers with 22 points, making 4-of-5 3-pointers.


ERIE, Pa. – The Gannon women's basketball team plays for the second time in 48 hours as they face a busy stretch of basketball. The 14th-ranked Golden Knights look to extend an 11-game winning streak while also maintaining a streak of 11 consecutive wins over Clarion (3-13, 3-8 PSAC West) on Monday, January 23 at Waldo S. Tippin Gymnasium. Tipoff is 5:30 p.m.

Gannon (17-2, 9-2 PSAC West) made it 11 straight wins on Saturday with a dominating performance at Mercyhurst as they continue to elevate their game. With another streak on the line the Golden Knights won for the ninth straight time against a Mercyhurst team that had earlier defeated both Indiana (Pa.) and California (Pa.) – on the road. They proved to be no match for a sizzling Gannon squad as the Golden Knights won 68-41.

The Golden Knights trailed just once in the contest at 2-0. They led 17-6 after one period, 35-18 at the half, and 55-26 after three quarters. A stifling defense limited Mercyhurst to 28.0 percent (14-of-50) shooting from the floor and controlled the glass to the tune of 44-27.   

The Golden Knights have climbed to 14th in the latest D2SIDA Division II Top 25. The 11-game winning streak is the longest since the 2013-14 squad ran off 17 straight victories to start the season.

With the exception of an atypical 94-88 win over IUP, defense has catapulted the Golden Knights to their 17-2 start. The Golden Knights have held nine opponents to under 50 points while allowing a PSAC-leading 53.8 ppg. They also pace the conference in field goal percentage defense at 34.3 percent. They have held six opponents to under 30 percent shooting from the floor.

Clarion has lost three games in a row and six of its last seven following a 67-57 loss to Edinboro on Saturday. While the Golden Eagles are 3-13 overall and 3-8 in the PSAC West, they are 3-4 at Tippin Gymnasium, with wins over Millersville, Shepherd, and Pitt-Johnstown. Scoring has been the biggest issue for Clarion, averaging 53.3 ppg., second-to-last in the PSAC. They have reached the 60-point mark just five times.

Gannon will play for the second time in 48 hours on Wednesday, January 25 hosting Seton Hill at 5:30 p.m. for their third game in five days. It becomes four games in eight days with a second straight home contest on Saturday, January 28 vs. Edinboro.

 
GOLDEN KNIGHTS LIKE TO STREAK
Gannon opened the season with a six-game winning streak. Following a pair of losses the Golden Knights have now run off 11 consecutive victories following Saturday's 68-41 at Mercyhurst. That is the longest streak since the 2013-14 team opened the season with 17 straight wins. In case you're wondering, the school record winning streak is 37 games, set by the 2009-10 Golden Knights. They ran off 37 wins in a row to reach the Division II Final Four before dropping a 97-94 overtime decision to Emporia State in the semifinals. Keeping with the streaking them, Gannon has now won nine straight games over Mercyhurst and now looks to extend a stretch of 11 wins in a row over Clarion.

PIROSKO GOES OVER 1,200 CAREER POINTS
Samantha Pirosko (Eastlake, Ohio/Eastlake North) didn't move past anyone on the career scoring charts on Saturday, but she did top 1,200 points for her career. The redshirt senior led Gannon with 15 points to move to 1,209 points for her career. She ranks 16th and is on the cusp of moving past a couple former Golden Knights. Linda Hunley stands 15th with 1,214 points and Casey England is 14th (1,224). Pirosko also became the 21st Golden Knight with 500 career rebounds as her total sits at 502. Pirosko has scored in double figures in 18 straight games with eight games of 20-or-more points, including a 32-point effort vs. California (Pa.) and 31 points at Slippery Rock. She leads the team in both scoring (19.0 ppg.) and rebounding (7.9 rpg.), ranking third in the PSAC in scoring and 11th in rebounding. She also racks second in the conference in field goal percentage (55.6 pct.) and stands fourth in free throw percentage (83.3 pct.).
 
GANNON 1,000-POINT SCORERS
1. Rona Nesbit (1978-81) -- 2,340
2. Kristin Roseberry (1999-02) -- 2,147
3. Christina Jackson (2004-07) -- 1,912
4. Mary Kay Lynch (1982-85) -- 1,743
5. Kristina Freeman (2007-10) -- 1,604
6. Nettie Blake (2012-15) -- 1,536
7. Jen Papich (2011-14) -- 1,534
8. Jacki Windon (1998-01) -- 1,524
9. Tonya Treharne (1986-89)  -- 1,415
10. Carrie Nolan (2006-10) -- 1,371
11. Kelly Reedy (1982-85) 1,315
12. Brittany Tabron (2006-10)  -- 1,313
13. Chelsea Rourke (2016-20) -- 1,286
14. Casey England (2004-07) -- 1,224
15. Linda Hunley (1980-83) -- 1,214
16. Sam Pirosko (2018-pres.) – 1,209
17. Kelly Moyer (1989-92) -- 1,186
18. Ashley Lowdermilk (2005-08) -- 1,183 
19. Kim Vargas (2007-10) -- 1,174
20. Julie Szykowny (1992-95) -- 1,158
 21. Brittany Batts (2012-15) -- 1,152
22. Tori Obenrader (Fryburg, Pa./North Clarion) (2018-22) -- 1,128
23.Carol Kloecker (1986-89) -- 1,097
24. Kelly Davic (1990-93) -- 1,079
25. Chris Zukowski (1988-91) -- 1,060
26. Sandy Zirkle (1994-97) -- 1,057
27. Angela Lucas (1995-98) -- 1,055
28. Nikki Smith (1999-02) -- 1,046
29. Jen Gwin (2002-05) -- 1,045
30. Mollie Sebald (2012-15) --1,013
31. Morgan Neighbors (2013-16) -- 1,006
 
WELCOME HOME NEELY
Gannon assistant coach Neely Whitehead returns to Clarion after playing in the backcourt for the Golden Eagles from 2017-22. Whitehead is in her first season as a member of head coach Cleve Wright's staff.

DEE-FENSE! DEE-FENSE!
Gannon continues to rank among the top defensive teams in Division II. The Golden Knights have held nine opponents to under 50 points while allowing a PSAC-leading 53.8 ppg. They also pace the conference in field goal percentage defense at 34.3 percent. Gannon ranked 10th in Division II in scoring defense and 13th in field goal percentage defense entering the weekend. The Golden Knights have held six opponents to under 30 percent shooting from the floor. On Saturday Mercyhurst scored just 41 points and shot 28.0 percent (14-of-50) from the floor.

GANNON DOMINATES THE GLASS VS. LAKERS
One of the keys to Saturday's win at Mercyhurst was an outstanding rebounding performance. The Golden Knights held a 44-27 advantage on the boards and limited the Lakers to just six offensive boards while pulling down 12 themselves. It led to a 16-2 edge in second chance points. Gannon ranks third in the PSAC in rebounding margin (+5.8). Oddly enough, the Golden Knights had been outrebounded in their previous three games.

BALANCE, BENCH THE KEYS
On Wednesday Gannon had six players score in double figures in an 86-57 win over Millersville. On Saturday only two players scored in double digits – Samantha Pirosko (Eastlake, Ohio/Eastlake North) with 15 points and Delaney Dogan (West Middlesex, Pa./West Middlesex) with 10 – but all eleven players scored. The bench continued to pay huge dividends. Holy Cross transfer Madison Demski (Erie, Pa./Villa Maria) likely played her best game as a Golden Knight, finishing with six points and eight rebounds in 20 minutes. Freshman Bri Claxon (South Webster, Ohio/South Webster) and senior Ali Benim (Erie, Pa./Harbor Creek) bounced off the bench to contribute nine and eight points, respectively. After missing the first 12 games with an injury, Emily Poling (Defiance, Ohio/Defiance) played a season-high 18 minutes, and while scoring just two points, the redshirt senior contributed six assists and three steal while not committing a turnover.  

WRIGHT REACHES 300 WINS AT GANNON DURING PUERTO RICO TRIP
Veteran head coach Cleve Wright picked up his 300th win as Gannon's head coach recently with a 63-44 win against UPR Rio Piedras. He is now in his 15th season in charge of the Golden Knights and has a 312-116 record. Overall he is in his 19th season and owns a 347-203 record. He is Gannon's career record-holder in victories.

SCOUTING CLARION
Interim head coach Jermaine Cooper has guided Clarion to a 3-13 record, with a 3-8 chart in PSAC play. All three of the wins have come at Tippin Gymnasium. The Golden Eagles suffered their third straight loss on Saturday to Edinboro, 67-57, and have now lost six of their last seven games. Sierra Bermudez leads a Clarion offense that averages just 53.3 ppg., 17th in the PSAC. The 5'9" sophomore is the lone Golden Eagle in double figures at 11.4 ppg. She is also the team's top 3-point threat (32-of-82), ranking second in the PSAC in 3-point field goal percentage at 39.0 percent. Ava Haddad adds 8.9 ppg. with Jada Smith at 8.6 ppg. and a team-leading 8.9 rpg. Haddad is a 6'0" freshman and Smith a 5'9" senior.

NEXT FOR THE GOLDEN KNIGHTS
Gannon is back in action for a third time in five days on Wednesday, January 25 hosting Seton Hill. Tipoff at the Highmark Events Center is 5:30 p.m. The Golden Knights will then make it four games in eight days on Saturday, January 28, hosting Edinboro.  
 
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Players Mentioned

Sydney Mitchell

#23 Sydney Mitchell

G
5' 11"
Senior
Tori Obenrader

#25 Tori Obenrader

P
5' 11"
Junior
Ali Benim

#10 Ali Benim

G
5' 8"
Senior
Delaney Dogan

#54 Delaney Dogan

F
6' 0"
Graduate Student
Samantha Pirosko

#44 Samantha Pirosko

F
5' 10"
Fifth Year
Emily Poling

#20 Emily Poling

G
5' 9"
Fifth Year
Bri Claxon

#12 Bri Claxon

G
5' 7"
Freshman
Madison Demski

#25 Madison Demski

F
6' 2"
Graduate Student

Players Mentioned

Sydney Mitchell

#23 Sydney Mitchell

5' 11"
Senior
G
Tori Obenrader

#25 Tori Obenrader

5' 11"
Junior
P
Ali Benim

#10 Ali Benim

5' 8"
Senior
G
Delaney Dogan

#54 Delaney Dogan

6' 0"
Graduate Student
F
Samantha Pirosko

#44 Samantha Pirosko

5' 10"
Fifth Year
F
Emily Poling

#20 Emily Poling

5' 9"
Fifth Year
G
Bri Claxon

#12 Bri Claxon

5' 7"
Freshman
G
Madison Demski

#25 Madison Demski

6' 2"
Graduate Student
F