GAMBIER, Ohio – The Allegheny College women's basketball team improved to 2-0 in North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) play with a 57-53 victory over Kenyon College this evening in Gambier.
Playing its first road game since Nov. 17 against Chatham College, Allegheny (6-3, 2-0 NCAC) used a solid performance from the charity stripe, shooting 15-of-21 (71.4 percent) compared to Kenyon's (5-3, 0-2 NCAC) 10-of-19 performance (52.6 percent) from the chalk. That proved to be a big difference in the contest as both teams combined to shoot 39-for-124 (31.5 percent) from the floor.
Senior forward
Ifeyinwa Uwazie and freshman guard
Delaney Arbore tied for high scoring honors with 13 points apiece. Uwazie came a rebound shy of her second career double-double, while fourth-year forward
Emma Pellicano chipped in with 10 points, eight rebounds, and four steals.
The Gators jumped out to an early 11-1 lead with Arbore and Uwazie combining for nine points during the opening stretch. The Ladies responded with a 10-3 run to cut the deficit to three, but field goals from Uwazie and senior guard
Jessica Mrdjenovich, and a trifecta from Arbore made it 21-15 after 10 minutes of play.
The difference hovered between three and seven points for the entire second quarter as the teams combined for 15 points in the frame. A jumper from Mrdjenovich and a Pellicano free-throw made the score 30-24 to begin the second half, but Kenyon used an 8-2 stretch to tie the game for the first time at 32. Allegheny responded with seven of the next eight points to regain the advantage; however, the Ladies fired back with a jumper and two foul shots to make it 39-38 Gators after three.
Kenyon took its first lead of the game with 6:41 remaining after Jessica Gerber sank a three-pointer. That was coupled with a Ladies layup to make it 45-41, but Mrdjenovich had an immediate response with a jumper of her own. After another jumper gave the hosts their four-point edge once more, freshman guard
Jazmen Moore cut the lead to one with a successful cast from international waters.
The Kenyon lead continued to hover around four points with as little as 3:58 left in the contest. Uwazie made a pair of attempts from the chalk to make it 51-49, and a layup on the fastbreak by freshman guard
Candaisy Crawford knotted it up at 51. Crawford then added a pair of free-throws on the next possession to give Allegheny the lead.
The Ladies were sent to the line and split a pair of foul shots to cut the Gator advantage to one, but Arbore responded with a jumper in the paint. Kenyon again earned two foul shots and again only made one, but the ricochet from the second attempt found the hands of Charlotte Bussema. However, the Ladies couldn't get a shot up after the offensive rebound as Pellicano pickpocketed Ifeoma Archimalo. The senior forward then sank a couple of free-throws on the other end to put the game away.
While Allegheny was outscored 14-2 on second chance points, it held a 12-0 edge on the fastbreak. The Gators also tallied 13 steals to Kenyon's eight and doubled the hosts' block total, six to three. Senior forward
Kaitlyn Fromknecht led the visitors with three rejections this evening.
Allegheny will enjoy nearly three weeks away from competition before getting back in action on Tuesday, Dec. 29 at the Capital University Holiday Tournament. The Gators are slated to face Calvin College at 5:00 p.m. in Bexley, Ohio.
