PITT-BRADFORD, PENN ST. BEHREND WOMEN EARN FIRST ROUND VICTORIES

The #3 Pitt-Bradford women's basketball team earned a 78-69 first round victory over #6 La Roche College, while #5 Penn St. Behrend grabbed the 63-57 upset victory over #4 Medaille College. 

Pitt-Bradford 78, La Roche 69

The Pitt-Bradford women's basketball team defeated La Roche, 78-69, in the first round of the AMC Championship Tournament Wednesday at the KOA Arena.

Senior guard Ali Rinfrette led Pitt-Bradford with 24 points and also dished six assists. Sophomore forward Jennifer Isenberg dropped 18 points and was one board shy of a double-double with a game-leading nine rebounds. Shaelyn Snipes scored 13 points and Bri Wells dropped 11 to also score in double-figures for Pitt-Bradford.

The Panthers got off to a fast start, outscoring La Roche 25-9 in the opening quarter. The Panther defense forced eight La Roche turnovers in the opening quarter and shot 50 percent on 11 of 22 attempts. The second quarter saw a more evenly matched offensive game on both sides, but not before the Panthers would extend their lead even further. At the 6:49 mark, a layup from Isenberg put the Panthers ahead, 31-13. La Roche would settle in and the two teams would even out offensively, but the Panthers were still able to build on their lead heading into halftime, outscoring the Redhawks 16-12 in the period to go into the break ahead, 41-21.

The Redhawks came out in the second half strong and the two teams put together an even third quarter with La Roche narrowly outscoring the Panthers, 18-16.

La Roche put together its strongest quarter of the game in the fourth, though. The Pitt-Bradford lead hovered around 20 points in the early minutes of the quarter until a 9-2 La Roche run cut the Panther lead to 69-59 with two minutes left in regulation. But Wells put an end to the threat as she took an in-bounds pass through the La Roche press and went up in transition, making the basket while drawing the foul. The three-point play put the Panthers ahead, 72-59. La Roche hung around, but the Panthers made their free throws down the stretch to hold off the Redhawks in a tough, physical fourth quarter. 

With the victory, the Panthers advance to the tournament semifinals to face second-seeded Mount Aloysius. Top-seeded Hilbert will host both semifinals games Saturday as well as the championship game Sunday. Saturday's semifinal game is set for a 3:30 p.m. tip-off.

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Penn St. Behrend 63, Medaille 57

The #5 Penn State Behrend women's basketball team upset fourth-seeded Medaille 63-57 in the first round of the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) Tournament on Wednesday night at the Sullivan Center.

Senior guard Erika Woll scored 17 points over the first three quarters and finished with a game high of 22 while dishing out a career-high 10 assists.

Senior forward Dani Reinwald led the Mavericks with 18 points and 11 rebounds.

Falling behind 6-2 in the first five minutes of the game, Behrend went on a 10-3 run to take a 12-9 edge after the first quarter. In a back-and-forth second quarter, the Lions broke a 24-all tie with a 6-0 run in the final minute to make it 30-24. Medaille managed to cut the lead by one with a three-pointer buzzer beat at 30-29.

Behrend outscored the Mavericks 19-11 in the third quarter, pulling away in the final three minutes. A quick pull-up jumper in the paint by Ally Dillman pushed the lead to 45-38 with under two minutes to play and then the ensuing fast-break layup by Woll made it a nine-point game. The Mavericks got a pair of free throws to drop and the next possession for the Lions, Behrend got a bucket off two offensive rebounds and then a good jumper from Autumn Byes.

During the regular season, the Lions committed less turnovers yet fell to the Mavericks in both contests but tonight Behrend converted the turnovers to points. A Medaille turnover led to a Woll layup for a 10-point lead and then Dillman drained a triple to make it 55-43.

The Mavericks pulled within six points with under two minutes. The next basket belonged to the Lions thanks to a missed Medaille three-pointer and then a basketball from Byes with 57.1 seconds left, forcing a Mavericks timeout at 59-51. Medaille started to foul with 30 seconds left to get the ball back, but Woll got both shots to fall for a 60-51 advantage with 20.5 to play. The Mavericks managed to score five points in 10 seconds and then got possession back on a turnover.  Reinwald was sent to the line at 61-56, making the second one with three seconds showing on the clock. Woll went to the line one more time and made both shots for a six-point win.

Behrend returns to action on Saturday at Hilbert as they take on the top-seeded Hawks at 1 p.m.