WASHINGTON, Pa. – Heidi Goeller and Laura Magnelli each set career-highs in scoring as the Gators (3-1, 0-0 NCAC) came out on top in a back-and-forth battle with Washington and Jefferson College 77-73 on Tuesday night at W&J.
The sophomore Goeller bested her previous career-high of 18 points with a 20-point effort. Magnelii also surpassed her previous high of 15-points as she netted 16. The leading scorer on the year for the Gators, Jill Gregory was the top-scorer again for the Gators as she turned in a game-high 22-points; one off her current career-high.
Gregory came out hot in the first half shooting 4-5 from the floor and a perfect 6-6 from the line to give her 15 points through the first 20 minutes. Allegheny was dominant in the first half inside as they controlled the paint racking up 18 points down low. En route to her career night in scoring, Goeller chipped in eight first half points on 4-6 shooting.
The score was tied three times and the lead changed hands twice during the first half, but the Gators led a majority of the half and had extended their lead to as much as 12 before ending the half with a four-point cushion, 41-37.
The second half was a much closer contest with four ties and 12 lead changes. The Presidents (0-4) made up the deficit early into the second period knocking down their first two shots to tie the game at 41. After tying the game, the Presidents continued their mini-run to start the frame with two more buckets to give them their largest lead of the game to that point, 4 points.
Keeping the Gators in the see-saw contest was their excellence from the charity stripe. For the game, the team finished 25 of 29, including a clutch 14 of 16 in the second half. Neither team rebounded well offensively as both teams combined for 16 offensive boards. Despite the lack of offensive boards, the Gators were superior in cleaning up the glass on the defensive end pulling down 31defensive boards. Allegheny held a 5-rebound advantage on W&J, 40-35 total.
The starting five for the Gators carried the scoring load as four of the five ended in double figures. Daryl Ford rounded out the starters' scoring effort and kept pace with her 10.0 ppg average as she added 11 of her own. Allegheny only got eight points off the bench.
Next up on the slate for the Blue and Gold is a road trip to Latrobe, Pa. to take on Saint Vincent College Saturday November 27th with tip-off scheduled for 6:00 pm.