EDINBORO, Pa. – Kutztown women's basketball continued its strong play as it led for all but 0:23 and defeated defending Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference champion and 16th ranked Gannon, 64-58, Saturday afternoon in a PSAC semifinal round game at Edinboro University's McComb Fieldhouse.
The Golden Bears (21-11 overall) will now take on the host Fighting Scots in the PSAC championship game Sunday at 3 p.m. Edinboro was a 74-65 winner over Lock Haven, the second seed out of the Eastern Division, in the other semifinal.
Since Jan. 13, Kutztown has won 15 of its last 16 games, including a program-record 12 wins in-a-row. KU will be playing in its second PSAC final in program history and first since the 2018-19 season. The Maroon and Gold have never won a conference title.
Graduate student
Abbey Hearn (Lewes, Del./Cape Henlopen) picked a good day to have a career-best game as she finished with a game-high 31 points and 13 rebounds for the double-double. It was the most boards in a game for the Lewes, Del., native since she grabbed 14 on Feb. 12, 2022. She was seemingly unstoppable, going 11-for-19 from the floor, 2-of-4 from long distance and 7-for-7 at the free-throw line in 37 minutes.
Freshman point guard
Bella Quinn (Ashland, Ky./Russell) also had another strong game, recording 13 points, six assists and five rebounds.
Kutztown came out firing on all cylinders, showing why it is deserved of the top seeding it entered the tournament with. KU scored the game's first six points, as baskets came from three different players in Hearn,
Naia Pulliam (Wilmington, Del./St. Elizabeth) and Quinn.
The Golden Knights did not record their first points until 4:00 in, a 3-pointer that cut their deficit in half at 6-3. But KU tallied the next five points and would go up by double figures (17-7) with 1:44 left in the opening quarter. The Maroon and Gold shot 41.2% (7-for-17) from the floor and held Gannon to just 18.2% (2-of-11).
The Golden Bears kept up their momentum into the second quarter. Following a 10-2 run by GU over the first 3:47 to cut Kutztown's lead to 20-17, KU ended the quarter on a 14-4 spurt to go into halftime on top 34-21, its biggest lead to date.
The Maroon and Gold extended their advantage to as high as 16 (39-23) 2:41 into the third quarter after a Pulliam 3-pointer. KU kept it within double figures the rest of the quarter and lead 46-35 after three.
After an
Olivia Smelas (Jim Thorpe, Pa./Jim Thorpe) layup 0:21 into the fourth quarter to push the advantage to 48-35, the Golden Knights began to climb back, in large part to their full court pressure defense. They went on a 10-0 run to cut their deficit to 48-45 with 8:20 still to play. GU wound up taking its first and only lead of the contest (55-54) with 2:58 remaining, but just 0:23 later, Hearn connected on a shot from distance to give her team the lead right back and for good.
