WB Senior Day
71
Seton Hill SHU 22-5,16-4 PSAC
89
Winner Gannon Gannon 24-5,16-4 PSAC
Seton Hill SHU
22-5,16-4 PSAC
71
Final
89
Gannon Gannon
24-5,16-4 PSAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Seton Hill SHU 19 19 14 19 71
Gannon Gannon 19 23 18 29 89

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

Gannon Claims Number Two Seed in Western Division with 89-71 Win over Seton Hill

Harris celebrates Senior Day with career-high 16 points

ERIE, Pa. – The Gannon women's basketball team celebrated Senior Day with an impressive 89-71 win over Seton Hill in a battle of two nationally-ranked teams. The victory vaulted the Golden Knights into second place in the PSAC West as the regular season came to an end on Saturday. Gannon now receives a first round bye and will host a PSAC Quarterfinal game on Wednesday, March 5.
 
Gannon improved to 24-5 and 16-4 in the PSAC West while winning its fourth straight game. The Golden Knights came into the game ranked 18th in the latest WBCA Div. II Top 25 and 24th in the D2CSC poll. Seton Hill was tied for 18th in the D2CSC poll and 20th according to the WBCA. The Griffins are 22-5 and 16-4, respectively. More importantly, was first in last week's NCAA Atlantic Region poll while Gannon was fourth.
 
The Golden Knights turned a tight game into a comfortable win thanks to outscoring Seton Hill 29-19 in the fourth quarter. Gannon entered the final period holding a 60-52 lead but the Griffins quickly closed to 60-57 just 30 seconds into the period.
 
Clinging to a 64-61 lead the Golden Knights went on the decisive run, scoring the next seven points and eventually grabbing an 80-65 lead with 2:21 remaining when Carissa Dunham (Fairview, Pa./Villa Maria) drained a 3-pointer. Gannon made 9-of-13 shots in the final period while Seton Hill was 5-of-15.
 
Gannon recognized two players appearing in their final regular season home game after the win, and both played a major role. Trinitee Harris (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Central), a senior guard, finished with a career-high 16 points, eight rebounds and three assists.
 
Though she has eligibility remaining Andrea Maibach (Creston, Ohio/Norwayne) is graduating in three years and moving on. The 6-foot-2 post player also came off the bench and contributed nine points and three rebounds in 12 minutes.
 
Gannon could well face Seton Hill again on Wednesday as the Golden Knights await the winner of Monday's first round game between the No. 3 seed Griffins and Clarion, the sixth seed. Tipoff at the Highmark Events Center is 5:30 p.m.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The first half was tight throughout. The first quarter ended in a 19-19 tie and featured three ties and three lead changes. Gannon gained a 42-38 lead at the half, scoring 15 points off turnovers in the second quarter.
 
Kate Ratliff (Canal Winchester, Ohio/Canal Winchester) gave Gannon the lead for good at 21-19 with a pair of free throws just seven seconds into the second quarter. But the Golden Knights could only extend the lead to seven points and seven times in the quarter Seton Hill closed to within a point. Trinitee Harri made 1-of-2 free throws with 11 seconds left and following a turnover Maddy Wheatley (Canberra, Australia/UCSSC Lake Ginninderra) scored in the final seconds for a 42-38 halftime lead.
 
Gannon extended the lead to eight points at 60-52 after three quarters as Trinitee Harris (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Central) scored a pair of buckets in the final minute.
 
Seton Hill put a scare into the Golden Knights to start the fourth quarter. The Griffins scored the first five points of the period to close to 60-57. The lead was still three points at 64-61 when Gannon scored seven straight points to go ahead 71-61. Ratliff accounted for a pair of hoops, Bri Claxon (South Webster, Ohio/South Webster) hit a jumper and Harris made a free throw as the lead grew to 10 points with 4:37 left.
 
All told, Gannon outscored Seton Hill 16-4 after holding on to the three-point lead as the lead grew to 80-65 with just over two minutes remaining. That came when Carissa Dunham (Fairview, Pa./Villa Maria) drained a 3-pointer.
 
BY THE NUMBERS
Gannon matched its season-high with 89 points. The Golden Knights also scored 89 points in an 89-75 win over Seton Hill on January 25.
 
Thanks to a 9-for-13 effort in the fourth quarter the Golden Knights shot 43.5 percent for the game (27-of-62), making 5-of-15 3-pointers. They limited a Seton Hill team that made nearly eight 3-pointers per game to a 5-for-23 effort from beyond the arc and 38.9 percent overall (21-of-54).
 
In a game that saw 55 total fouls and each team lose three players to fouls Gannon made 30-of-36 free throws while Seton Hill finished 24-of-26.
 
The key factor in the game was Gannon's defense forcing 23 turnovers while committing just 10 turnovers. The Golden Knights held a 32-9 advantage in points off turnovers. The rebound battle went to Seton Hill by a slight 37-34 total.
Kate Ratliff (Canal Winchester, Ohio/Canal Winchester) led four Golden Knights in double figures as she scored a game-high 23 points. The 6-foot-0 sophomore spent considerable time at the thanks to an array of drives, making 15-of-18 free throws. She added five rebounds, five steals and a pair of blocked shots.
 
Bri Claxon (South Webster, Ohio/South Webster) added 16 points, with nine coming in the final period. Trinitee Harris (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Central) came off the bench to also score 16 points, a career-high for the senior guard. She made 5-of-7 field goals and 6-of-8 free throws, adding a season-high eight rebounds and three assists.
 
The Gannon bench contributed 40 points, with Carissa Dunham (Fairview, Pa./Villa Maria) the fourth player in double digits with 10 points on two 3-pointers and a 4-for-4 effort at the line. Andrea Maibach (Creston, Ohio/Norwayne) had nine points in 12 minutes.
 
NEXT FOR THE GOLDEN KNIGHTS
Gannon will host a PSAC Quarterfinal game on Wednesday, March 5 at 5:30 p.m. The Golden Knights, seeded second in the Western Division, will play the winner of Monday's first-round game between No. 3 seed Seton Hill and No. 6 Clarion.   
 
Print Friendly Version