Box Score

ERIE, Pa. – Maggie Mitchell netted a game-high 29 points, hitting 8 of 14 attempts from 3-point range, and Gannon pulled away in the final five minutes of regulation to earn an 83-71 victory over East Stroudsburg University on Saturday afternoon.

The Warriors (6-3, 2-3 PSAC) tied the game at 66-66 with 5:21 remaining on a jumper by freshman guard Sadie Cresswell, but the host Golden Knights (3-7, 3-2 PSAC) ended the contest on a 17-5 run.

Cresswell was one of four ESU players to reach double figures, as she tallied a career-high 12 points. Freshman guard Tiffany Lapotsky also established a new career-high with 13 points, while sophomore guard Noelle Powell scored a team-high 15 and senior forward Allison Howard added 10.

The Warriors shot a season-low 32.8 percent from the field, and they hit only 10 of 31 attempts from long distance (32.3 percent). With Mitchell leading the way, Gannon was hot from 3-point range all afternoon, as the home side finished 11 for 19 as a team (57.9 percent) while shooting 49.1 percent from the floor overall.

A 3-pointer by Howard capped a 9-2 run by ESU to begin the contest. The teams remained close throughout the remainder of the opening quarter, with Gannon ultimately taking a 24-20 advantage into the second.

The Golden Knights scored 16 of the first 20 points in the next frame, including a 12-0 stretch, to open up their largest lead of 16 points at 40-24 with 3:23 left before the intermission. A 3-pointer by Cresswell and a 3-point play by Lapotsky fueled a 6-0 run by the Warriors to reduce the deficit to 43-35 at the break.

Gannon maintained a 60-51 edge with 2:02 left in the third, but five ESU free throws, including four by Powell, made it a four-point game heading into the final quarter. The Warriors had another strong performance from the charity stripe, hitting a season-high 89.5 percent of their free throw attempts (17-19). ESU, which leads the PSAC at 77.3 percent for the year, has shot 80 percent or higher from the line in four of the season's opening nine contests.

Two free throws by Cresswell created the game's first tie since tip-off  at 64-64 with 7:17 left, and another jumper by the freshman knotted up the score at 66-66 two minutes later. The Warriors, though, shot only 1 for 7 from the field and committed four turnovers in the final five minutes of regulation.

With three reserves scoring 10+ points, ESU's bench outscored Gannon's by a 40-14 margin. Lapotsky was 4 for 7 from the field and 2 for 3 from long distance while hitting all three of her free throw attempts. She eclipsed her previous season-high of 11 points which was set in a win at Chestnut Hill on Nov. 28.

Powell reached double figures for a sixth-straight contest and the eighth time overall this season, while Howard continued her streak of scoring 10 or more points in every game on the year.

Senior guard Madison Tamburini grabbed a team-best eight rebounds, including five on the offensive glass, to match a career-high.

The Warriors now have three weeks off before traveling to Cheyney on December 30 for their PSAC East opener, with tip-off scheduled for 1 p.m.