MEADVILLE, Pa. – On the strength of 33 points off the bench, the Allegheny women's basketball team was able to match visiting Ohio Wesleyan University blow-for-blow in a high-scoring affair on Saturday afternoon coming away with a 92-82 win at the David V. Wise Center.
Having lost the first meeting between the two schools earlier this season, the rematch took on a new level of importance for the Gators (11-7, 5-3 NCAC) in terms of seeding in the NCAC standings. The Battling Bishops (9-10, 5-3 NCAC) came into the contest in sole possession of second place, and the Gators enter the game in a three-way tie for third place. With the split in the season series, the two teams now sit in a tie for second place in the NCAC through this weekend's action.
The game was back and forth throughout with seven lead changes and 10 ties. The Battling Bishops took control early holding a single-digit lead for the initial nine and a half minutes of play. The Gators would hang tough through that early stretch and tied the game at 18-all with 11:53 remaining in the first half. Immediately following the tying bucket, the Gators forced a turnover on defense and pulled ahead with a rainmaker from rookie sharpshooter Saddie Gravatt. Allegheny would hold the lead in the game for the next five minutes of game time. With the score tied 29-all at the 5:56 mark, the two teams would trade the lead over the next minute and a half. The Gators however would close out the final minutes of the first half on a 12-6 run to take a five-point cushion into the break.
The Gators had little answer for the Battling Bishops offensive attack in the paint in the first half. A total of 24 of the Battling Bishops' 38 first-half points came in the paint. Allegheny was also productive inside with 18 points in the paint. Not surprisingly, both teams shot well overall from the floor in the first half; Allegheny shot at a clip of 47.1% while Ohio Wesleyan shot 51.9%. The difference in the first half was the production from beyond the arc. The Gators sank five of their nine shots from long range, while the Battling Bishops came up empty on seven attempts.
The second half would prove to be much of the same in terms of shooting percentage and long range production for both teams. Each shot 42% from the field and the Gators remained efficient shooting the three-ball knocking down 3-of-6 in the half. The Battling Bishops were able hit a pair of treys, but were only 2-of-8 in the half. The stat that took a major turnaround was the battle inside. The Gators outscored the Battling Bishops 22-to-14 in the paint.
For the game, the Gators had four players (two starters and two off the bench) reach double figures; two of which set new career highs in the process. Senior guard Jill Gregory was a highly efficient scorer once again as her career-high 25 points on 10-of-14 shooting led the way for the Gators. Gravatt, who scored a career-high 16 points off the bench, was lethal from beyond the arc knocking down 4-of-5 for the game. It is the second time in her last three games that she had knocked down four three-pointers.
The final two double-figure scorers put in just as much work on the glass, helping the Gators out-rebound the Battling Bishops 48-to-34. Sophomore Daryl Ford and freshman Erica Restich each notched a double-double. Ford had 16 points and 10 boards while Restich, who came off the bench, scored 15 points and pulled down a career-high 12 boards (seven offensive). The advantage on the glass is the fourth time in their last five games that the Gators have won the battle of the boards; in those games the Gators are 4-1.
Allegheny will look to continue their good play as they will host the Yeowomen of Oberlin College in mid-week action at the David V. Wise Center on Wednesday, February 2nd starting at 6:00 pm. The game can be followed live through Allegheny's Live Stats link: http://www.sidearmstats.com/allegheny/wbball/index.htm.