(ALTOONA, PA:) Penn State Altoona outscored visiting
Hilbert 31-21 in the second half and held the Hawks to just 35% field goal
shooting on the game en route to a 60-49 victory Saturday at the Adler Gym.
The Lions improved to 9-8 overall and 6-4 in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate
Conference while Hilbert dropped to 9-8 and 5-5 in the AMCC.
Leading 47-43 with 6:08 remaining, Altoona used a 6-0 run over
the next 3:30 that included four straight Zach Spitz (Harrisburg, PA/Susquehanna
Township) free throws and a Colin Geiger jumper to extend the advantage to 10
(53-43). Hawk forward Noah McHale made a lay up with 2:01 left to cut the
deficit to six, but Spitz and Quintin Dziabo (Cresson, PA/Penn Cambria) combined for three straight free
throws in the final minute to put the game out of reach.
The Lions shot 19-45 from the field (42.2%) and 6-17 from three
point range (35.3%). Altoona was excellent from the charity stripe,
connecting on 16-19 attempts (84.2%) with all but one coming in the second half.
Junior guard Colin Geiger (Pottstown, PA/Pottsgrove) and
freshman forward Kirk Peters (Harrisburg, PA/Susquehanna Township) combined for
25 first-half points and each finished with a team-high 15.
Hilbert jumped out to a 12-3 lead behind two triples and a
jumper by preseason conference Player of the Year Dallas Reinard. The 6-4
senior guard, who finished with 16 but scored only two in the second half, moved
into first place on the all-time Hilbert scoring list with 1,637 career points.
Reinard was the only Hawk to reach double figures.
Teammates Michael Reyes and Travis Jackson finished with nine and eight,
respectively, as the team received just nine points from its bench.
The Lions got 21 points from their reserves and held an 18-12
advantage in points off turnovers. The contest featured four ties and five
lead changes. The 49 points allowed by Altoona was the fewest this season.
After sophomore Justin Gasbarre (Pittsburgh, PA/Bethel Park) hit
a trey to tie the game 3-3 at the 18:49 mark, the Lions wouldn't score again
until a Mike Dancer (Montgomeryville, PA/North Penn) steal and lay up
four-and-a-half minutes later. Geiger scored Altoona's next eight points,
and Peters finally gave the hosts their first lead 23-22 on a bucket with 5:29
left in the first half.
Penn State Altoona, who earned its fifth straight win over the
Hawks, returns to action this Wednesday, January 30, for an AMCC match-up with
La Roche College. Tip time is 8:00 PM at the Adler Gym.
CONTACT: Penn
State Altoona Sports Information
Steve Crider -- SID
814-949-5173
sac310@psu.edu
