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By Joe Mattis
ERIE, PA – A record setting performance by Glenville State Friday afternoon powered the Pioneers to a 111-86 win Shaw in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division II women’s Atlantic Regional hosted by Gannon University.
Glenville State (27-3) set a D-II record by drilling 21 3-pointers while assuring that there will be a new D-II champion. Shaw. Oakland had the old record of 18 against Southern Indiana in 1996, while the Bears, the third seed in the region who ended their season at 25-5, won the national championship in 2012.
“That’s what we do,” said Glenville State coach Bunky Harkleroad said about his team’s up-tempo style of play. “We try to get 45 threes a game.” The Pioneers finished 21 of 51 on threes and also were perfect in 18 attempts at the free throw line.
But 3-pointers are not the only part of Glenville State’s game. Harkleroad said he wants his team to shoot 100 shots, force 30 turnovers and grab 35 rebounds. The Pioneers fell short of one of those goals with 82 shots, but forced the Bears to turn the ball over 30 times and had 41 rebounds.
“Our game is to get the ball inside,” Shaw coach Jacques Curtis said. “We probably had the worst matchup of the tournament."
Kenyell Goodson, a 5-8 junior guard, led Glenville State with 24 points.All of them came on eight 3-pointers, one short of the tournament record. “I was really feeling it,” she said of her hot shooting. “It’s good (to beat the defending champion), but it’s not over.”
Glenville State, which came into the game leading the nation in scoring (95.3 ppg), set the pace by hitting 13 of 28 three-points while rolling to a 55-45 halftime lead. Shaw cut that lead to 68-61 on Taylor Dalrymple’s jumper with 12:25 left in the game. But the Pioneers scored 11 of the next 14 points for a 79-64 lead.
Junior guard Ginny Mills had the honor of hitting the record-setting 3-pointer. That came with 5:11 left in the game and gave the Pioneers a 95-76 lead.
Mills, who scored 20 points, said she wasn’t aware of the record. “It’s nice to know. It’s exciting,” she said after learning about what her team accomplished. She also said that the players feed off each other when they begin to hit threes. “When we see someone hit a three, we try to give it back to them.”
Ashleigh Fossett scored 13 points and both Briauna Nix and Kenyona Simmons scored 12 for the Pioneers, the No. 6 seed and an at-large selection after losing to Charleston in the WVIAC quarterfinals.
Crystal Harris paced the Bears, the CIAA champion, with 16 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Dalrymple and Isayra Diaz each scored 14 points, Adana David had 13 and Crystal Wilson added 10.
