Box Score l
Highlights
SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – Freshman forward
Marlene Bassett matched a season-high with 18 points, including 12 in the second half, as East Stroudsburg University snapped a 19-game losing streak at Shippensburg with a 61-57 road victory on Wednesday.
Bassett hit 9 of 13 shots from the field in 35 minutes of action for the Warriors (13-6, 11-4 PSAC), who earned their first win at Shippensburg since 1987. Senior guard
Imani Brown added 13 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while sophomore guard
Jordan Hertz contributed seven points, four assists and five steals.
Four of those steals for Hertz came in the first quarter, as ESU forced eight turnovers (seven steals) overall in the frame to jump out to a 17-8 lead.
The roles were reversed in the second, as Shippensburg used a late 10-0 run to move in front 25-21. Junior guard
Ann McKnight snapped an 0 for 11 field goal stretch for the visitors with a 3-pointer at the buzzer to pull the Warriors back within one heading into the intermission.
The Raiders maintained a 33-30 edge midway through the third, but a jumper by Bassett ignited a 14-6 stretch by the Warriors to close the quarter with a five-point, 44-39 advantage.
The lead grew to as large as eight points in the early stages of the fourth quarter. Shippensburg twice pulled within two in the final minutes, last doing so at 58-56 with 56 seconds left on the clock. McKnight responded with two clutch free throws on ESU's next offensive possession, and the Raiders were unable to hit a field goal for the remainder of the contest.
McKnight's late free throws helped her match a career-high with seven points overall. Bassett, meanwhile, hit 6 of 7 field goal attempts in the second half in a dominant performance inside the paint. She also matched Brown's team-high with seven rebounds, five of which came on the offensive end.
At 36-32, ESU out-rebounded its opponent for the first time since December 30 against Mansfield. The Warriors are now 4-0 this season when winning the battle on the glass.
Freshman Ariel Jones had a team-high 17 points for Shippensburg, while Victoria Blackburn added 12 points and five rebounds.
Tonight's win, coupled with a 68-60 loss by Kutztown at Bloomsburg, increases ESU's lead to four games over Kutztown (12-9, 7-8) for second place in the PSAC East standings. West Chester (16-4, 13-3) remained a game and a half ahead of the Warriors in first place after topping Millersville for its 11-straight victory.
ESU returns to action on Saturday, with the Warriors traveling to Mansfield for a road matchup scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.