GA Women's Basketball Outlasts Penn State DuBois, 64-54

GA Women's Basketball Outlasts Penn State DuBois, 64-54

DuBois, Pa. - The Penn State Greater Allegheny women's basketball team traveled to Penn State DuBois, Saturday afternoon, where GA came out victorious in the Penn State University Athletic Conference match-up, 64-54.

A slow start to the game as senior point guard Taylor Fulton (Duquesne, Pa./West Mifflin), freshman power forward Aaquila Youngblood (Pittsburgh, Pa./Obama Academy) and freshman power forward Tenisha Gibson (Pittsburgh, Pa./Obama Academy) managed just eight points through the first eight minutes of play. Junior guard Nakayla Layne (Pittsburgh, Pa./Taylor Allderdice) completed both free-throws attempted to tie the score at ten. Gibson and junior power forward Christina Floyd (Philadelphia, Pa./Saints Goretti-Neumann) deposited a combined 14 points toward the GA tally over the course of two minutes. 

The game remained back and forth for the last six minutes of play before halftime. Fulton made good on two free-throws before Youngblood added another. Floyd and Youngblood then matched one another with a lay-up. Fulton closed the half as she put up two free-throws to send the game to break, Greater Allegheny up 33-31.

Greater Allegheny came out hot from halftime, as Fulton, Youngblood and junior guard Shelby Bendick (White Oak, Pa./McKeesport Area) dumped lay-ups on the DuBois defense. Layne capped off the scoring streak with a jumper, as GA found themselves inflated to 41-31. DuBois managed to get points on the board before Youngblood and Floyd added lay-ups to the blue and white mark. Floyd then added six to the tally, tying the game at 51 with seven minutes to play. 

Youngblood, Fulton and Floyd forced steals and secured points toward the Greater Allegheny tally, as their team swelled to a 57-51 lead in just 43 seconds. The GA defense held off DuBois as Bendick completed both of her free-throws attempted. The game rode its final minutes of playing time with contributions from both Layne and Fulton. At the end of regulation, the Penn State Greater Allegheny women's basketball team found themselves on the winning side of their tenth conference victory of the season, 64-54. With the DuBois overtake, Greater Allegheny moves to 13-8, 10-3 PSUAC.

Floyd closed the game with 20 points added from 44.4% (8-of-18) of shots taken from the floor. Alongside her points added, she also pulled down 21 boards, eleven of them being offensive, and got in the way for four steals. Fulton played a surge in the offense, as the senior added 15 points, gained ten rebounds, dished out eight assists and nabbed six steals. Youngblood put up twelve points from 50% (5-of-10) of shots taken from the floor. The freshman assisted her team by grabbing nine rebounds.

As a team, Greater Allegheny completed 58.8% (20-of-34) from the charity stripe along with 32.4% (22-of-68) of their shots taken from the floor. The GA women out-rebounded DuBois by a landslide, 51-29. The team also increased their score 26 points off of 25 DuBois turnovers. Penn State Greater Allegheny also bucketed 40 points in the paint alongside their 27 points off the bench.

Greater Allegheny women's team next sees action, Tuesday evening, as Carlow University comes to Wunderley Gymnasium for a non-conference match-up. The game is scheduled for tip-off at 6 p.m.