Trinitee Harris shoots against West Chester.
Bryce Dolak
71
West Chester WCU 7-3,2-2 PSAC
86
Winner Gannon Gannon 12-1,4-0 PSAC
West Chester WCU
7-3,2-2 PSAC
71
Final
86
Gannon Gannon
12-1,4-0 PSAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
West Chester WCU 15 16 19 21 71
Gannon Gannon 23 23 22 18 86

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Bob Shreve, Assistant Director of Athletics Media Relations

No. 3 Gannon Wins Ninth Straight Game with 86-71 Win over No. 9 West Chester

Game marks final appearance in Highmark Events Center for extended period

ERIE, Pa. – Earlier in the day the Gannon women's basketball team learned it had moved up to third in the latest WBCA Division II Top 25. That's the highest ranking since the 2013-14 season. Gannon then went out and turned in a performance worthy of the third-ranked team, handing No. 9 West Chester an 86-71 defeat in a battle of top-ten teams.

Gannon extended its winning streak to nine games in a row while improving to 12-1 overall and 4-0 in PSAC action. The Golden Knights handed West Chester its second straight loss as the Golden Rams dropped to 7-3 and 2-2 in league play. The nine-game winning streak is the longest since 12 straight wins a year ago.

A large crowd turned out to see the matchup with a West Chester team that reached the Atlantic Regional final last year and was voted the preseason favorite in the PSAC East. They weren't disappointed as they were treated to an impressive showing in the final game to be played at the Highmark Events Center for an extended period. The facility will undergo extensive renovations with the Golden Knights playing the rest of their games this season at Cathedral Prep's Hagerty Family Events Center.

A hot-shooting Gannon team came out on fire to jump out to a 23-15 lead after ten minutes. They made 10-of-15 shots in the opening period. West Chester led 2-0 on a pair of free throws in the opening minute. McKel Nation (Lebanon, Ohio/Springboro) answered with a layup and when Samantha Pirosko (Eastlake, Ohio/Eastlake North) hit a short jumper the Golden Knights led 4-2. They would never trail again.

Gannon used a 14-4 run midway through the second quarter to build its lead to 40-24 with 3:28 left. Pirosko accounted for seven of the points and Maddy Wheatley (Canberra, Australia/UCSSC Lake Ginninderra) added five. The Golden Knights led 46-31 at intermission.

West Chester closed the gap to ten points at 46-36 with five straight points to open the third quarter. But the Golden Rams had no answer for a Gannon offense that posted a season-high 86 points vs. WCU. An 8-0 Bri Claxon (South Webster, Ohio/South Webster) run late in the period built the lead back up to 19 points at 63-44. The sophomore guard made a pair of 3-pointers along with a layup. WCU never got closer than 12 points the rest of the night.

Claxon led three Golden Knights in double figures. One night after scoring a season-high 26 points in a hard-earned win over Kutztown she hit the 20-point mark once again with 21 points. She made 9-of-18 field goals including 3-of-8 3-pointers.

Pirosko contributed her fifth double-double of the season with 18 points and 10 rebounds. She made 6-of-9 field goals, including 2-of-3 3-pointers, and was 4-for-4 at the line, adding three assists. Pirosko extended her streak of consecutive games scoring in double figures to 46 games and she now has 1,762 career points, fourth all-time, while moving with one rebound of eighth place with 699.

Trinitee Harris (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Central) enjoyed her top game of the season as the junior college transfer scored 13 points along with dishing out six assists. She made 4-of-7 field goals, with 2-of-4 3-pointers, plus 3-of-3 at the line. Just as important, she hounded 2023 honorable mention All-American Leah Johnson. Johnson would finish the night with 20 points but made just 7-of-18 shots and had only two assists.

Wheatley finished with eight points and six rebounds and Nation also scored eight points, adding three steals.

Gannon ended the night shooting 54.2 percent (32-of-59), the third time over 50 percent this season. That included a 12-of-27 ledger from beyond the arc, plus 10-of-13 at the line. West Chester shot 45.5 percent from the floor (25-of-55), with two 3-pointers in seven attempts, and was 19-of-25 at the line.

The Golden Knights held a 34-27 advantage on the glass and forced 14 turnovers while committing 16.

Gannon now takes break for the Christmas holiday before returning to action for the final time in 2023 on Saturday, December 30 at Millersville. Tipoff is set for 1:00 p.m.  
 
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