Scranton Lady Lions Basketball Drop Conference Battle with Greater Allegheny

By: Ross Turetsky, Penn State Scranton Athletics

In a Martin Luther King Jr. Day road holiday afternoon tilt, the Penn State Scranton Lady Lions basketball squad fell to conference foe Penn State Greater Allegheny 80-38. With the loss, Scranton sees their overall record go to 0-12 and in the all-important league schedule they are now 0-9.

The hometown Allegheny Lions got off to a hot start and never looked back in the contest, as they outscored Scranton 24-6 in the first quarter, 19-6 in the second, 24-12 in the third frame, before finally being outpaced by their opponent 14-13 in the fourth and final quarter of play, as they cruised to their dominant 42 point victory by the game's final whistle.

In the ball game, Scranton had two players score in double figures, as freshman stand-out guard Megan Gatto and senior team captain Sam Collins set the pace on the offensive side of things. Gatto notched another double-double, with her team-high 12 points and 10 rebounds, while connecting on 2-5 of her three point attempts, to go along with an assist, a steal, and a block in her impressive 39 minutes of action. Collins provided a solid presence down low throughout the matchup, tallying 11 points on an efficient 5-11 shooting from the field, to go along with six boards, an assist, and a block. Honorable mention also goes to freshman guard Emily Cron and sophomore forward Alicia Gagner who put up solid performances as well. Cron grabbed an awe-inspiring game-high 13 rebounds to go along with her two points and an assist. Last but certainly not least, Gagner put up eight points on a quality 3-6 shooting from the field, to go with her four boards, and two assists in her 26 minutes of hard work.

Meanwhile, Allegheny had a whopping four players score in double digits in the matinee, as sophomore guard Vanessa Luna, fellow sophomore Mia McNair, freshman forward/center Abby Henderson, and sophomore forward Nevaeh Maynes led the way. Luna scored a game-high 20 points on a sound 9-15 shooting from the field and 2-6 from three point land, to go along with her six rebounds, four assists, four steals, and a block in her stalwart 25 minutes on the floor. McNair put up 17 points while shooting a robust 5-11 from beyond the arc, to go along with her trio of boards, two assists, and a steal. Henderson was tough in the low post where she notched a double-double with her 16 points and 11 rebounds, to go along with her top notch seven steals on defense, four blocks, and four assists in the ball game. Finally, Maynes came off the bench and provided a nice spark for her team in her 21 minutes on the court, as she tallied 12 points on 6-12 shooting from the field, to go along with her seven boards, two steals, and an assist to boot.

Now head coach Tom McIntyre and his Penn State Scranton Lady Lions basketball squad will look to bounce back and capture their first win of the season when they next face off on the road against conference foe Penn State Mont Alto this upcoming Wednesday night, with tip-off scheduled for 6pm. Meanwhile, head coach Tre McKeithen and his Penn State Greater Allegheny ball club, who are now on a red hot four game winning streak that has improved their overall record to 8-5 and 6-4 in the crucial league play, will look to continue their victorious ways when they next host conference rival Penn State Shenango this Wednesday at 6pm.