(ALTOONA, PA:) Trailing by six at intermission, Medaille
outscored host Penn State Altoona 47-30 in the second half to grab an 82-71
victory over the Lions Saturday at the Adler Gym. The Mavs snapped a six
game losing streak and improved to 7-7 overall and 2-5 in the Allegheny Mountain
Collegiate Conference. Altoona fell to 7-7 and 4-3 in the AMCC.
Reserve Kelly Condello drained a three pointer that just beat
the halftime buzzer to cap a 6-0 run and trim the Altoona lead to six (41-35) at
the break. Medaille then scored the first nine points of the second half
and took the lead for good on a Chris Moscato long ball with 16:16 remaining.
A Curtis Geiger (Pottstown, PA/Pottsgrove) three pointer with
9:25 left in the game brought the Lions to within one (59-58). But the
Mavs used a 22-13 advantage the rest of the way that included a 6-0 run that
pushed the lead to double figures. The victors shot a blazing 58% from the
field over the final 20 minutes (18-31) and finished with six more field goals
than Altoona.
Both teams made 14 free throws on the day and shot an identical
12-29 (41.4%) from the floor in the first half. Penn State Altoona also
shot 12-29 in the second half and finished the game at 41.4% FG shooting
(24-58). Medaille got a number of easy buckets in the second half which
resulted in a 34-20 advantage in the paint. The Mavs also turned 16
offensive rebounds into 20 second chance points.
Medaille received 19 points from all-AMCC guard James McNeil,
who scored 37 and 26 points in two previous visits to the Adler Gym.
Teammates Bill Gersitz and Keith Hack each added 14 for the Mavs, who held a
14-5 advantage in steals.
For the second straight game, Geiger was the Lions top scorer,
pouring in 19
points, 14 in the first half, and five treys. Senior Quintin Dziabo
(Cresson, PA/Penn Cambria) scored 18 and grabbed seven boards while freshman
Eric Gaetano (Montoursville, PA/Loyalsock Township) hit 3-3 triples and finished
with 13 points off the bench.
Penn State Altoona opened the game on an 8-2 run before Medaille
scored the next eight points to retake the lead. The Lions used a 13-2
spurt capped off by a Gaetano long ball midway through the period to stake a
29-18 lead.
The Lions will try to bounce back on Monday, January 21, as they
visit local AMCC rival Mount Aloysius. Tip time in Cresson is 8:00 PM.
CONTACT: Penn
State Altoona Sports Information
Steve Crider -- SID
814-949-5173
sac310@psu.edu
