LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – The LHU women's basketball team (6-3, 3-1 PSAC) topped the Clarion Golden Eagles (2-8, 0-4 PSAC) 68-55 in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) East-West crossover on Friday afternoon at Thomas Fieldhouse in Lock Haven.
Clarion came out hard, going up 8-0 early in the first quarter before a pair of threes from Rileigh Devine (Etters, Pa. / Red Land) helped Lock Haven start to claw back at the lead. The Golden Eagles held on to a 20-14 lead going in to the second period of play, but LHU continued to chip away at the deficit, eventually pushing ahead on a three from Trinity Sumrall (Lancaster, Pa. Hempfield) with just over five minutes left in the half.
The Bald Eagles continued to push ahead, closing out the first half up 32-29. Some back and forth at the start of the second saw Clarion jump ahead 35-34, but Lock Haven was quick to squash the Golden Eagles momentum, stringing together eight points to go ahead 42-35 with three minutes left in the third quarter. The Golden Eagles closed the gap to just two once again, but a pair of free throws from Jaynelle Robinson (Williamsport, Pa. / Williamsport (Monroe CC)) put LHU up 44-40 heading in to the final period of play.
Lock Haven tacked on the points in the fourth, stringing together a series of seven points in the final minutes to crush any hopes of a comeback from Clarion.
It was an all-around offensive effort, as four different Bald Eagles recorded in the double-digits for Lock Haven in Friday's contest. Taylor Leidy (Alexandria, Pa. / Juniata Valley), Marena Lonardi (Elizabethtown, Pa. / Elizabethtown), and Devine all recorded 12 points, while Robinson added 10. Ahnera Parker (Lancaster, Pa. / J.P. McCaskey) chipped in for nine points off the bench.
Along with her 10 points, Robinson recorded an astonishing 19 rebounds to mark her fourth double-double of the season. Robinson, who has tallied 105 rebounds and has averaged 11.7 per game this season, has led the PSAC in both rebounds and rebounds per game for the majority of the season. Another six offensive rebounds tonight pushed Robinson's offensive rebound per game average to 5.1, good for sixth in all of Division II Women's Basketball.
UP NEXT: The Bald Eagles return to action tomorrow afternoon when they face Pitt-Johnstown in another PSAC East-West crossover at Thomas Fieldhouse. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.
