Johnstown, Pa. - The Millersville University women's basketball team trailed Pitt-Johnstown 37-24 at halftime but outscored the Mountain Cats 18-5 in the third quarter to make it a tie game entering the final quarter. After five lead changes in the final period the Marauders ultimately lost, 62-58.
"It was really good to see the way we came out in the second half," head coach
Mary Fleig said. "I'm glad to see us play that way in back-to-back games. We saw some growth these past two games and I think it will help our consistency moving forward."
Lauren Lister and
Courtney Dimoff combined for 50 points, with Lister totaling a career-high 31, including 14 of the team's 16 in the final quarter. She shot 78.6 percent from the floor and has only missed one minute on the court in the last two games. Dimoff set a new career high in 3-pointers with five.
"Courtney definitely built some confidence with her shooting tonight," Fleig said.
Millersville falls to 3-7 overall and 1-4 in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) play, while Pitt-Johnstown improves to 6-5 overall and 2-2 in conference play.
Neither team led by more than three points for most of the final quarter, but two-consecutive free throws by Gabrielle Smith gave the Mountain Cats a four-point lead with 2:17 remaining in the game. A 5-2 run by the Marauders, during which Lister made five free throws, pulled them to within one with 44 seconds left on the clock. Smith hit a layup in the paint at the buzzer while falling down to give Pitt-Johnstown a three-point cushion with just 15 seconds to go. Millersville was unable to overcome the deficit and lost its closest game this season.
Dimoff went 3-for-4 from beyond the arch in the first quarter, but the Mountain Cats led 17-12 at the end of the period. Millersville chipped away at the Pitt-Johnstown lead in the second quarter and trailed just 26-23 with 3:20 remaining in the period. The Mountain Cats then finished the quarter on an 11-1 run to go into halftime with a 13-point lead.
"We had a lapse in the second quarter," Fleig said. "We either didn't play with good intensity or didn't make any defensive adjustments. But we did make adjustments at halftime. We switched to man-to-man coverage and did a really good job with that."
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
• The Marauders held a 35-23 edge in rebounds, with
Kendra Bamberger notching a game-high eight.
• Millersville (45.7) and Pitt-Johnstown (45.8) were nearly identical in shot percentage.
• Lister and
Catherine Copeland were the only two Marauders who went to the charity strip, with Lister going 9-for-14 and Copeland going 1-for-2.
NOTES
• The Mountain Cats have now won eight of the last nine matchups against the Marauders and are 5-0 at home against Millersville since 2001.
• The four-point margin marks the Marauders' closest defeat of the season and Pitt-Johnstown's closest win of the season. It also marks the Mountain Cats' largest margin of victory in their last three wins against Millersville.
UP NEXT
• The Marauders will take a break from PSAC play but remain on the road when they travel to Holy Family on Sunday, Dec. 30 for a 1 p.m. match.
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