SCRANTON, Pa. - Sophomore guard Bridgette Mann (Canadensis, Pa./Wallenpaupack) scored a game-high 22 points, including nine alone in the final period, as the third-ranked University of Scranton women's basketball team pulled away from a tough Washington & Lee squad in the fourth quarter in a 69-54 victory on Saturday night inside the John Long Center as part of the 2016 Hilton Scranton Poinsettia Classic.
With the win, the Lady Royals moved to a perfect 9-0 on the year and extended their regular season winning streak to 44 games, while they've now won 22 straight regular season home contests, as well.
Washington & Lee fell to 2-5 overall with the defeat.
In the first period, it was Washington & Lee who raced out to a lead, as the Generals held a 13-6 edge over the Lady Royals after the first 10 minutes of regulation. To open the second quarter, Washington & Lee continued to hold the advantage, going up by 10 points early at 16-6.
Here, Scranton began to go on a run to take the lead back, as an 18-2 spurt over a five minute time frame gave the Lady Royals a 24-18 advantage with 4:34 left in the first half. The Generals, however, cut the lead down to just two points entering intermission, as Scranton held a slim 29-27 edge entering halftime.
The game continued to remain close throughout the third quarter, and with five minutes left in the frame, it was tied at 40-all, marking the sixth time on the night that the game was tied.
This marked the final time all evening that the contest would be knotted up, as Scranton ended the quarter on a 6-0 run (with four of those points coming from Mann), to give themselves a 46-40 lead entering the fourth.
In the final period, freshman Emily Sheehan (Dunmore, Pa./Dunmore) quickly gave Scranton a seven-point lead on a three-pointer, which was a big shot, as the closest Washington & Lee came to the Lady Royal lead the rest of the game was four points (51-47 with 6:49 left).
There, Scranton went on a game clinching 8-2 run that gave them an insurmountable 59-49 lead with 3:40 left.
The closest the Generals came to the lead the rest of the contest was six points (60-54), as Scranton salted the game down the stretch to collect their ninth win in a row to open the season after outscoring the Generals 23-14 in the final frame.
Overall, Mann went over 20 points for the third time on the 2016 season, nailing a trio of three-pointers, while going a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line. Mann also grabbed five rebounds and dished out three assists in the victory, as well.
Elsewhere, senior forward Alexix Roman (Hawley, Pa./Wallenpaupack) went into double-figures in the scoring column for the fifth straight game, ending with 16 points of 6-of-8 shooting from the floor. She also pulled down eight rebounds in the victory.
Rounding out the top performers on the night for Scranton were Sheehan, freshman guard Mackenzie Yori (Hazleton, Pa./Hazleton) and senior forward Sarah Payonk (Schwenksville, Pa./Spring-Ford), who all scored eight points, apiece. Sheehan and Payonk each dished out four assists, apiece in the win, while Payonk grabbed eight rebounds, as well.
Scranton will now play Stockton (winners tonight over Maine-Presque Isle, 100-48) in the Championship Game of the 2016 Hilton Scranton Poinsettia Classic on Sunday, beginning at 4 p.m. inside the John Long Center. Washington & Lee and Maine-Presque Isle will play the third place game of the Poinsettia Classic starting at 2 p.m.
--LADY ROYALS--