MEADVILLE, Pa. (Nov. 28) – The Waynesburg University women's basketball team traveled to Allegheny College on Saturday to square off with the home-standing Gators. The Yellow Jackets held multiple leads on the day, but wound up falling 85-82 in overtime.
Things started out well for the visiting Jackets (1-4), who jumped out to a 12-4 advantage over the first 3:09 of play. Senior forward
Maura Bobby began a big day on the court by knocking down a game-opening three-pointer. After Allegheny (3-3) responded with its first basket, Waynesburg responded by tallying the next seven points of the game to build a 10-2 lead.
Sophomore forward
Addy Knetzer sandwiched a pair of layups around an old-fashioned three-point play from sophomore guard
Katie Gehlmann. Knetzer struck again for two following a basket from the Gators to make the score 12-4 early in the contest. A 9-1 spurt from the home team tied the contest at 13-13 with 3:45 remaining in the period, but the Jackets found themselves with a 20-17 edge when the opening quarter came to a close.
The second period belonged to Allegheny, which out-scored its opposition 24-12 to build a 41-32 halftime lead. However, the Orange and Black responded in a big way during quarter number three. Bobby piled up 14 points in the period, as the Jackets out-scored their hosts 31-12 in the third to regain the lead at 63-53.
Momentum swung back to the Gators in the fourth-and-final frame. Not only did the Blue and Gold catch Waynesburg, but clung to a 76-74 edge with 31 seconds showing on the game. Knetzer came up with her biggest hoop of the day to tie the score at 76-76. Allegheny had one last shot to win the game in regulation, but the attempt came up short.
The Gators scored the first two points of extra time on a pair of free throws and never trailed from that point forward. The Jackets pulled to within one point (83-82) on a Gehlmann three-pointer with 35 seconds left to play, but Allegheny found the bottom of the net one last time in the waning moments of the day to seal the win.
Bobby led all scorers with a game-high 24 points on 11-of-18 shooting, while Knetzer added 14 points over just 16 minutes of action. Gehlmann and senior guard
Lauren Blair chipped in 11 each, while junior forward
Haley Delaney yanked down a team-high 10 rebounds. Blair also dished out a game and personal season-high eight assists.
Waynesburg returns to the court on Wednesday, Dec. 2, with its first Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) game of the season. The Yellow Jackets head to Thomas More for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff.
