Women's basketball pink 2018
Tyler Schueck
67
Lancaster Bible LBCW 12-8, 10-1 NEAC
68
Winner Penn State Berks PSBW 7-9, 5-6 NEAC
Lancaster Bible LBCW
12-8, 10-1 NEAC
67
Final
68
Penn State Berks PSBW
7-9, 5-6 NEAC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Lancaster Bible LBCW 20 12 15 20 67
Penn State Berks PSBW 20 18 16 14 68

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

Herman nails game winner in final seconds to top LBC

READING, PA - Kylie Herman knocked down a baseline jumper with 3.6 seconds left and the desperation heave by Lancaster Bible College bounced harmlessly off the glass to give the Penn State Berks women's basketball team a thrilling 68-67 victory over the Chargers in a North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) contest on Wednesday night.

The victory improves the Nittany Lions to 7-9 overall and 5-4 in the South Division, while the Chargers now sit at 12-8 on the season and 8-1 in division play. Penn State Abington (5-3) is currently second in the division, while Berks and Gallaudet are tied for third (5-4). Wilson and St. Elizabeth are tied for fifth in the division with a record of 3-5. The top four teams make it to the postseason and will play in the NEAC Quarterfinal round on Tuesday, February 20.

The teams played a relatively even first quarter, with Berks largest lead at four and the Chargers biggest advantage at two points. Sam Brensinger made a fast break layup as time expired to make it a 20-all game after one period. The second quarter saw LBC go ahead by four in the early going, but the Nittany Lions closed out the period strong and led by six (38-32) going into the halftime intermission. Berks built a 10-point cushion out of the break and eventually led 54-47 heading into the fourth.

The final period proofed to be a rollercoaster ride for both sides. The Nittany Lions led by 11 (60-49) with 6:55 to play, but LBC battled back and grabbed its first lead of the second half (63-62) with 1:58 left. Melissa Martin made a key offensive rebound to keep the play alive and Herman made a mid-range jumper to go up 64-63 with 1:37 on the clock. Jennifer Martin recorded a blocked shot on the ensuing possession by LBC, who got an offensive rebound and then both teams traded turnovers. Following a timeout, the Chargers took the lead off a layup by Courtney Goyak with 31 seconds remaining. Herman responded with an off-balance floater for a 66-65 lead, with the clock now down to 13 seconds. Caitlin Hickey put the Chargers up by one after knocking down a pair of free throws with seven seconds left. Berks immediately called a timeout to move the ball up to its own side of mid-court and was fouled in the corner on the inbound. Herman received the inbound pass running toward the baseline, she turned took a dribble and left over a jumper that rattled in and sent the bench and the crowd into a frenzy. The Chargers sent the ball right in and got to mid-court where Kirsten Webster's shot was off target to secure the Berks victory.

Herman tallied the final six points of the game for the Nittany Lions and finished the contest with 12 points, all of which came in the second half. The sophomore guard notched nine rebounds and handed out a career-high seven assists. Brensinger and Jennifer Martin tied for the team-lead with 17 points each. Brensinger shot 7-of-10 from the floor and was 3-of-4 from long distance, while Martin went 8-of-16 shooting mostly layups and short jumpers. Abbie Carr, Deanna Daddona, and Melissa Martin all chipped in six points. Carr turned in another stellar defensive performance, finishing the contest with 11 boards, three blocked shots, and two steals.

One of the keys to victory for the Nittany Lions was the bench production, where Berks outscored LBC by a 21-2 margin. Brensinger had the bulk of that total, but Julia Bookwalter had a key put-back in the second quarter. Later that period, Elise Paskowski tallied the final score of the first half to give Berks its six-point edge heading into the break. In a game where every point mattered, those moments turned out to be huge for the Nittany Lions.

Webster led the Chargers with 22 points, while Hickey added 19 points to go along with four blocked shots. Goyak notched a double-double with 15 points and a contest-high 17 rebounds.

Overall, the teams finished even with 37 rebounds a piece, while LBC committed only 11 turnovers compared to just 13 by Berks. Offensively, the Nittany Lions shot 46.4% (32-of-69) from the floor versus 40.0% (26-of-65) by the Chargers.

This was the first victory for Berks against LBC since January 28, 2012, which was the first year that the Chargers began competing in the NEAC.

The Nittany Lions hit the road for a pair of crossover contests against the NEAC North Division. They will face SUNY Cobleskill on Saturday, February 3 at 3  p.m., followed by Penn College on Sunday, February 4 at 1 p.m.





 
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