Bradford, Pa. -- The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford women's basketball team tied their matchup with the Hilbert Hawks in the final minute on Wednesday night but fell as the visitors responded with a three of their own, leading to a 55-52 Panther loss.
The Panthers got off to a strong start as Trinity Lockwood-Morris was able to drive to the basket for two early layups and Abigail Goss added two baskets from the post to put the Panthers up 8-6. The Panthers pushed their lead to seven as Ashley Hall made a three after a steal and Daizjah Brown hit a pull-up jumper with just under four minutes to go in the quarter. Unfortunately, the Panthers were not able to add anything else for the remainder of the period, as the Hawks scored 5 unanswered points, sending the game to its second quarter with the Panthers ahead 13-11.
Hilbert was able to keep their momentum rolling as the next quarter began, scoring two early baskets to go ahead, but the Panthers answered through Lockwood-Morris and Goss who got inside for another two buckets to restore the two-point edge. The two teams exchanged the lead three times over the next three minutes before the HAwks once again scored five in a row to go ahead 26-21. Goss made two free throws to end the four-minute drought for the Panthers, and neither team scored in the final 1:25 leading to a halftime score of 26-23 Hilbert.
After the break neither team scored for more than two minutes before Brown was able to make a mid-range shot, cutting the lead to one. The Hawks answered with a layup and then pushed their lead back to 6 with a three-pointer. McKenna Kelly and Goss took over for the Panthers from there, combining for 14 points over the last 5 minutes of the quarter. Kelly scored 10 of them, including two free throws with six seconds left in the third, to put the Panthers down 1 point heading into the final stanza.
Lockwood-Morris started the 4th quarter off with a jump shot to give the Panthers their first lead since the 5:$5 mark of the 2nd quarter. It did not last long, however, as the Hawks quickly retook the lead with a pair of free throws and a jumper following a Pitt-Bradford turnover. Goss made a putback layup to cut the lead to one point and after the teams traded free throws, Kelly put the Panthers back in the lead with a driving layup. The Hawks retook the lead on the following possession and eventually pushed their edge to 4 points with two minutes left. Ashley Hall made a layup after an offensive rebound to cut the lead to two, but the Panthers were unable to take advantage of two defensive stops after the layup. With 30 seconds left, Hilbert missed a pair of free throws and after the Panthers rushed down the floor, Goss kicked a pass out to Hall who hit a game-tying three from the corner with 16 seconds remaining. The Panthers' joy would not last long, as after a timeout, Hilbert was able to answer with a long ball of their own. The Panthers were able to get a good look to tie the game in the final seconds, however, Hall's final three-point attempt fell short, resulting in a 55-52 final.
Abigail Goss put in the best performance of her young career, recording her first double-double, as she set career highs with 19 points and 11 rebounds. She also tallied one steal, two blocks, and the big assist on Hall's tying three. McKenna Kelly scored 13 points off of the bench, all in the 2nd half. She also had 4 rebounds. Ashley Hall added 8 points, while fellow senior Daizjah Brown had 6 points and 7 rebounds.
The Panthers fall to 3-14 with the loss and 1-6 in the AMCC. They will hit the road this weekend, as they travel to Pittsburgh for a matchup with 1st place LaRoche.
