Box Score GRANVILLE, Ohio—Sophomore Kaitlyn Fromknecht recorded her first collegiate double-double as the Allegheny women's basketball squad shook off a halftime deficit to pick up a critical, 76-69, overtime win over North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) rival Denison University on Saturday afternoon. 

Fromknecht anchored 38 points in the paint and 18 second chance points for Allegheny (10-6, 4-3 NCAC), finishing Saturday's contest with new career highs in points (14), rebounds (11), and blocks (5).  Fellow second year Jessica Mrdjenovich tallied 19 points, shooting 7-of-16 from the field, while picking up five rebounds, a team-high three assists and two steals.

Sophomore Emma Pellicano spearheaded Allegheny's late game heroics, finishing the contest with 17 points, including a 7-of-9 performance from the charity stripe.  Fellow second year Rachel Vigliotti, who set the program record in free-throw percentage last season, finished Saturday with 11 points, mostly caused by a 6-of-6 afternoon from the free-throw line.

Led by Fromknecht's performance on the glass, the Gators out-rebounded the Big Red, 51-39, including 17 offensive rebounds compared to Denison's nine.  Juniors Marina Scarantino and Kendall Hoffman made a splash on the defensive end, as Scarantino's team-high three steals and Hoffman's two helped Allegheny score 13 points off of 16 Denison turnovers.

With Saturday's decision, Allegheny wins its first overtime contest since January 5, 2010, an 80-69 road triumph over Oberlin.  The Gators have only been in five overtime games since the 2009-10 season, including Saturday's contest, as the win also marks the ninth time during the 2013-14 season that the Gators have eclipsed the 75-point mark.

In a defensive first half, Denison took advantage of a slow start from the Allegheny offense to take a 17-6 lead with 9:36 left on the clock.  Over the first 11 minutes of the contest, the Gators only shot 4-of-15, providing Denison the opportunity to take the early lead.  However, a quick 5-0 run sparked by a layup by Mrdjenovich and a three-pointer by sophomore Makenzie Zidek brought the Gators back into the game. 

The Allegheny shooters started to gain momentum after Zidek's fastbreak three-pointer, cutting the lead to one possession with 3:46 remaining after a fastbreak layup by Fromknecht   Just as Denison looked to run away after a 6-0 run, Zidek buried another three-pointer with 1:44 left and Denison entered the half with a 32-27 lead over the Gators.

Pellicano gave the Gators their first lead of the contest with 11:00 left in the second half after converting a pair of free-throws.  Allegheny led by as many as five with 3:57 remaining, but the two squads battled back and forth, each finding an answer before two converted free-throws by Denison's Mary Margaret Habel with 21 seconds remaining sent the contest to overtime tied, 64-64.

Heading into overtime, the reigning NCAC Newcomer of the Year set the tone for the extra session, as Pellicano scored a layup to put the Gators up, 66-64.  The Big Red went cold after a bucket on their first possession, finishing the extra session 2-for-9 from the floor and 1-of-2 from outside the arc.  In comparison, the Gators went 8-of-10 from the charity stripe in overtime to clinch the key road win.

The Gators will return to the David V. Wise Center on Wednesday, Jan. 22 to welcome the Fighting Scots of Wooster for a 7:30 p.m. matchup.