Behrend Defeats Women’s Basketball 82-67
by Christina Roukas
ALTOONA, Pa. – On Saturday afternoon, the Penn State Altoona women's basketball team played against Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference opponent Penn State Behrend in the Adler Arena, with Altoona losing 82-67.
Penn State Behrend (12-1, 6-0 AMCC) started the first period by putting two points on the scoreboard on a layup from Alanna Dibble. Behrend kept that lead throughout the quarter until the game was tied 16-16 with less than two minutes remaining, when Alexis Cannistraci (Tyrone, PA/Tyrone) made two free throws to even the score. Penn State Altoona (2-12, 1-6 AMCC) followed by taking the lead 18-17 on a Cannistraci layup at 1:11. After a jumper by Megan Hartman (Claysburg, PA/Claysburg-Kimmel) gave the Lions a 20-17 lead, the period ended with a 20-20 score following a last-second three-pointer from Behrend's Caitlin Carnuche.
In the second quarter, Penn State Altoona displayed great hustle but was unable to stay on track offensively, only scoring four points in the entire period. Behrend posted a 21-4 scoring advantage over Penn State Altoona in the period and went into halftime with a 41-24 lead.
In the third period, Penn State Altoona picked up their offense and scored 19 points. However, Penn State Behrend continued to hold on to the lead by a large margin, ending the third quarter up 61-43. In the final period, Penn State Altoona continued to hustle and put 24 points on the board. Ellie Matthews (Kennett Square, PA/Kennett) scored 15 points during the fourth quarter for Penn State Altoona, but Behrend led by as many as 22 points during the period and posted a 15-point decision to hand the Lions their third straight loss.
Cannistraci scored a game-high 26 points for Penn State Altoona, hitting 10 field goals and finishing with her third-highest scoring output of the season. She also tied for the game-high in assists with seven, grabbed seven rebounds, and added two steals and a block.
Meanwhile, Matthews finished with a season-high 21 points for the Lions while hitting 10 shots from the floor, and she recorded seven rebounds, two assists, two steals, and two blocks. Emma Kitko (Houtzdale, PA/Moshannon Valley) had a team-high nine rebounds to go along with six points, three steals, and two assists, and Sarah Huston (Coatesville, PA/Coatesville) had seven assists, five points, four rebounds, and two steals.
Next, the Penn State women's basketball team will be playing against NAIA opponent Carlow University Celtics on Monday, January 17. Tipoff for that game has been set for 6:00 pm.
