SCRANTON, Pa. - Senior guard Bridgette Mann (Canadensis, Pa./Wallenpaupack) came off the bench to score a team-best 17 points, as The University of Scranton women's basketball team used a 21-5 rally in the third quarter to pull away from visiting Capital in an eventual 62-52 win in the final game of the 2018 Hilton Scranton Poinsettia Classic on Sunday.
With the victory, the sixth-ranked Lady Royals stayed unbeaten on the year at 9-0, winning their 41st straight non-conference regular season game in the process. Capital fell to 6-3 with the loss.
The theme of the ballgame through the first three quarters was one in which a side dominated play in 10-minutes periods.
In the opening stanza, Scranton ballooned a 10-7 edge into a 23-10 lead to end the first quarter after finishing off the frame with a 13-3 run. Igniting the run was Mann, who entered the game and nailed three 3-pointers (without a miss), including her last that gave the Lady Royals the 13-point lead.
Down double figures, Capital punched back in the second quarter, outscoring the Lady Royals by a 21-8 edge to send the game into halftime tied up at 31-all. The Crusaders were even able to take a lead in the second frame, going up, 28-27, on the Lady Royals.
After struggling on offense in the second quarter, the Lady Royals did anything but in the third quarter, pulling away from the Crusaders with a 21-5 run.
The dominance started right away for Scranton, as a 11-2 spurt in the first four and half minutes of the third quarter put Scranton up by nine points (42-33).
After extending the lead out to 13 points (49-36), junior guard Emily Sheehan (Dunmore, Pa./Dunmore) finished off a third quarter for Scranton with a bang for the second straight day, as her three at the buzzer gave the Lady Royals a 52-36 edge over Capital entering the fourth quarter.
The 16-point lead for Scranton turned out to be insurmountable for Capital, as the closest the Crusaders came to the Lady Royals lead the rest of the day was seven points (59-52 with 33 seconds left). With the 10-point win, the Lady Royals captured their eighth win by double figures on the year, as well.
Overall, Mann was hot from the field all game in her 17-point performance, shooting 5-of-6 from the floor and 4-of-5 from three-point range. Mann also dished out three assists in the win, as well.
Elsewhere, Sheehan continued her strong play with a 14-point performance, while pulling down seven rebounds. Rounding out the double-digit scorers for the Lady Royals was junior Sofia Recupero (Whitestone, N.Y./Saint Francis Prep), who finished with 10 points and four rebounds. For her performance on the weekend, Recupero was named the team MVP for the Hilton Scranton Poinsettia Classic for the Lady Royals, as well.
Capital was led in the loss by Erin Risner, who scored a game-high 23 points. For her performance on the weekend, Risner was named Capital's team MVP for the Poinsettia Classic.
The University of Scranton women's basketball team will play one more game before going on break for the Christmas holiday, as they travel to Gwynedd Mercy on Tuesday night. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
--LADY ROYALS--