Bradford, Pa. – The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford women's basketball team used a suffocating defensive effort to earn their first victory of the season, defeating Keuka College 60-44.
The contest got off to a slow start as neither team was able to score for the first 3:20 of play. The Panthers jumped ahead with 6:36 to go, using back to back layups from Avery Benzel. Ashley Hall made a layup and a three to extend the advantage to 7 points before the Wolves answered with 5 quick points of their own. Alexa Ackerman made a three to slow the rally before Keuka made a layup with 17 seconds left in the first, finishing the quarter with Pitt-Bradford ahead 12-9.
The Wolves started the second quarter with a layup to cut the lead to one, but Pitt-Bradford answered with an Abigail Goss free throw and consecutive baskets inside from Hall and Benzel. After another stop, Hall hit another three to extend the lead to nine points. The visitors were able to score five straight to get back to within four points, but Benzel finished the quarter with a layup and a three to send the game to the break with the Panthers leading 24-16.
Keuka opened the scoring after the break with a three, but Ashley Hall responded, scoring eight straight points with a pull-up jumper and a pair of threes to push the Panther lead into double digits. A three from Alexa Ackerman finished the rally, which saw the Panthers outscore the Wolves 11-0 over a three-minute span. Following a timeout, Keuka scored five of 7 points in the game, but a pair of McKenna Kelly jumpers and a Daizjah Brown Layup extended the Pitt-Bradford advantage to 17. Keuka added a free throw in the final minute but saw Benzel make two with seven seconds left in the half to finish the third period with Pitt-Bradford up 43-25.
Yet another long ball from Hall saw the Panther lead surpass 20 points after a minute of play in the fourth. The Wolves were able to find more offensive success in the half, scoring 19 points in the 4th, just six less than their output for the first three quarters. The Panthers were able to maintain their lead, scoring 17 points of their own, often answering Keuka rallies with one of their own. Hall added 11 points to her total in the 4th, making 4-6 from the field and 3-5 from three.
One game after setting a new career high with 20 points at Thiel, Ashley Hall had a career night, pouring in 29 points. She was also the game's leading rebounder, collecting 13 in the contest. Avery Benzel added 16 points for the Panthers, shooting 6-12 from the field. Alexa Ackerman added 6 points, while also grabbing 5 rebounds and recording 5 assists. Abigail Goss collected 9 rebounds, including 4 on the offensive end.
The Panthers move to 1-7 with the win. They will take the next week off four finals, and then return to action on Saturday, December 17th, when they travel to Penn State-DuBois for a 1:00 p.m. tipoff.
