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Jan. 23, 2010
Gannon went on a 13-0 run in a span of just 2:35 in the first half to build a double digit lead, and the undefeated and fourth-ranked Golden Knights went on to a 75-59 victory over IUP in a PSAC West game Saturday in Erie. The victory gave Gannon (20-0, 4-0) sole possession of first place in the PSAC West, one game ahead of IUP, California and Mercyhurst. IUP (10-6, 3-1) had its four-game winning streak snapped and lost for just the 14th time in its last 54 PSAC West games over the past five seasons. Gannon has won 30 consecutive regular season games. Hillary Shope scored 13 points and Eryn Withers had 11 to lead IUP, which had not lost since a 68-54 defeat at Shippensburg on January 9. Kierstin Filla had five assists and has 387 in her career to tie Megan Woodall for second place in school history. Julie Lozon contributed four assists. Four Golden Knights reached double figures, led by Shanna Thompson who came off the bench to hit 9 of 12 from the field and score 18 points. Kim Vargas had 13 points followed by Carrie Nolan with 11 and Brittany Tabron with 10. Tabron also had 12 rebounds, and Gannon held a 32-24 edge on the boards while shooting 52.4 percent for the game. A layup by Sarah Pastorek created a 9-9 tie with 15:35 remaining in the first half before the Golden Knights took control of the game. Gannon made six of its next seven shots and held IUP scoreless for nearly three and a half minutes to build a 22-9 advantage at the 12:27 mark. A 3-pointer by Withers temporarily stopped the Gannon surge, but the red hot Golden Knights promptly hit 6 of 7 field goal tries and a layup by Vargas made it 32-14 with 7:56 left in the half. At that point in the game, Gannon was shooting 78.9 percent from the field (15 of 19) while IUP was committing 11 turnovers to hurt its cause. The Golden Knights led by as many as 20 in the first half and shot 61.3 percent overall to take a 40-25 lead at the break. The Crimson Hawks didn't get their deficit below 13 until a 3-pointer by Withers made it a 12-point game with just over two minutes remaining. Following a 2-1 PSAC West road swing, including victories over Mercyhurst and Lock Haven, IUP returns home for the first time since January 13 when it hosts California on Wednesday at 5:30. |
