Lions can't stick with AMCC frontrunner Medaille
2.16.08

(BUFFALO, NY:)  Medaille College had four players reach double figures and dominated visiting Penn State Altoona 42-18 in the paint en route to a 82-59 victory over the Lions Saturday afternoon at the Sullivan Center.  The Lady Mavs improved to 21-2 overall and 15-1 in Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference play while Altoona dropped its fourth game in five outings and stands 10-13 overall, 7-9 in the AMCC.

Carissa Ferrucci scored 16 points on 8-12 field goal shooting, and three-time conference Player of the Year Amanda Baker added 16 and five rebounds in just 16 minutes of action.  Marisa Clark and Amanda Walling chipped in 14 and 12 points, respectively, for the Lady Mavs, who never trailed in the game and shot 43.4% from the floor (33-76).

All 33 of Medaille's baskets were 2-pointers as the squad only attempted three long balls on the day.  The Lady Mavs got 30 points off of 30 Penn State Altoona turnovers and held an 18-2 advantage on fast break points.  Clark and Ferrucci combined for 11 of the team's 20 steals, and Medaille center Sara Bukas had a game-high five blocks.

Altoona managed just 19 field goals on 52 tries (36.5%), and canned nine 3-pointers that kept them within striking distance in the first half.  After Medaille jumped out to a 10-2 lead to begin the game, the Lions knocked down six treys over the final 16:06 of the period and found themselves down two (24-22) at the 8:36 mark.  But the Lady Mavs used a 10-2 spurt to pull ahead and take a 42-32 lead at intermission.

A Walling lay up gave Medaille its largest lead of the game, 61-42, with 12:06 remaining.  The pesky Lions executed a 10-0 run over the next three minutes to trim the deficit to nine but then committed five turnovers and suffered through a four minute scoring draught while the Lady Mavs netted 12 unanswered points.  Reserve Jordan Schrimmel's basket with 2:05 left marked the largest Medaille lead of the game at 26 (82-56).

The Lions were fronted by senior Brittany Poorman (Altoona, PA/Altoona), who came off the bench to score 14 points and make 6-7 field goals.  Classmate Erin McGowan (Duncansville, PA/Bishop Guilfoyle) and sophomore Alicia Glasser (Marion Center, PA/Marion Center) each scored nine for Altoona, who was out-rebounded 46-33 and allowed 18 second-chance points via 18 Medaille offensive boards.

Medaille entered the game ranked 20th in the country in the latest USA Today ESPN Division III Top 25 Coaches Poll.  The Lady Mavs improved to 7-1 in the all-time series between the two schools.

Penn State Altoona, which travels to Pitt-Greensburg on February 20 for a 6:00 PM tip with the Bobcats, has already locked up a spot in the upcoming AMCC playoffs for the first time since 2004.  Mount Aloysius, who is currently tied with the Lions in the conference standings, is in its last year of NCAA provisional status and is ineligible for postseason play.  The top six teams make the AMCC tournament. 

CONTACT:        Penn State Altoona Sports Information
                           Steve Crider  --  SID
                           814-949-5173
                           sac310@psu.edu