The Pitt-Bradford women’s basketball team suffered a one-two
punch this week in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference
standings following a 64-63 overtime defeat to Pitt-Greensburg at
the Sport & Fitness Center on Friday.
After a dropping a 66-52 decision to first-place Medaille
College on Tuesday, the Lady Panthers let a 12-point first-half
lead slip away in the loss to the second-place Lady Bobcats.
“We didn’t execute our offenses or box out and rebound,” said
Daly Fuller, Pitt-Bradford head coach. “We sent them (Lady Bobcats)
to the free throw line 20 times (16-for-20) in the second half.
It’s a shame we let this game slip away from us.”
Pitt-Greensburg led 7-4 with 16:54 left in the first half when
the Lady Panthers went on a 21-6 run to lead by a dozen at the 8:07
juncture.
The hosts carried a 35-25 margin into the locker room at the
intermission, but the Lady Bobcats cut their deficit to 37-32 with
18:03 showing.
Jen Cole then converted a traditional three-point play and a
trifecta to give Pitt-Bradford a 43-32 advantage at the 16:09
mark.
“She is playing well,” Fuller said of Cole, who is a 5-10
sophomore from Smethport. “After her back injury, she is feeling
better and is understanding our concepts. She is a shooter and will
be a big lift for us.”
The Lady Panthers maintained their lead until the 8:57 juncture
when a layup by Tish Hines sent Pitt-Greensburg in front 49-48.
Pitt-Bradford regained the lead at 50-49 and stayed on the plus
side until Amanda Clevenger’s triple at the 1:05 mark forced the
extra session at 59-all.
After two lead changes and a tie in overtime, a bucket by Rose
Wilken gave the Lady Panthers a 63-62 advantage with 1:37 left.
Pitt-Greensburg’s Tiffany Menhorn then drilled a pair of clutch
free throws to put the visitors back into a 64-63 lead with 11
ticks showing.
The Lady Panthers raced back up the floor, but Katie Moore’s
layup attempt was blocked by Teya Minor and the ball trickled over
the baseline as the horn sounded.
“We had a sideline break where the ball is supposed to be passed
up the sideline,” Fuller recalled. “We didn’t run it and had a
shooter open in the corner. We did get a good shot off and it was a
good block. Katie (Moore) feels terrible, but it wasn’t her
fault.
“We know we can play with anybody in this conference,” Fuller
continued. “We’re just not finishing games and that’s part of being
young. The last couple of minutes of regulation and overtime we
stopped executing.”
Michelle Kushner came off the bench for 15 points and Cole added
12 points with her 3-for-4 accuracy from beyond the arc. Menhorn
led Pitt-Greensburg (13-4, 9-1) with 17 points, five assists and
six steals.
There is no rest for the weary as the Lady Panthers (6-11, 4-6)
host third-place Frostburg State (11-5, 7-3) this afternoon at 4
p.m.
“We have to beat Frostburg,” Fuller stated.
