Box Score (New/Sortable Format) EDINBORO, Pa. (March 5, 2013) – There's an old adage in sports that beating an opponent three times in one season is hard to do. That message rang true again Tuesday night as the 18th-ranked and Fighting Scots, the second seed from the West, squared off against third-seeded Indiana (Pa.) in a PSAC quarterfinal contest after sweeping the season series from their divisional rival. In the end, though, Edinboro overcame a second half deficit and prevailed, 75-71, to advance into this weekend's conference final four.
 
The Fighting Scots (22-5) defeated IUP (22-8) by double digits in both regular season meetings, however both games were played much closer than the final scores revealed.
 
The third game proved to be the tightest of all as the Crimson Hawks led by three at half and owned a one-point lead with 2:33 to play following a jumper from Lindsay Stamp for a 64-63 edge. After an exchange of free throws which left the game knotted at 65-65, Darche' Jackson's running one-hander off a feed from freshman Bobbi Baker allowed Edinboro to seize the game's final lead change and a 67-65 advantage with 1:55 left.
 
Another Jackson lay-in stretched the lead to four (69-65), but Marita Mathe pulled IUP back within a bucket as her shot from inside the paint cut the Boro lead to just two. The teams then traded free throws as Kiara Brown made good on two attempts for Edinboro and Sarah Pastorek did likewise for IUP. The momentum swung firmly back to the Boro as the clock ticked to 32 seconds. While head coach Stan Swank called for timeout on the sideline, freshman Aignee Freeland slipped behind the IUP defense. The referee did not grant the request for time and Brown dished to Freeland for an easy layup and a 73-69 score.
 
Stamp kept the game in doubt with two shots at the line, but Jackson put the game on ice by hitting her free throws after IUP was forced to foul.
 
The win advances Edinboro into the PSAC semifinals at Bloomsburg (22-5) on Friday.
 
Edinboro played the majority of Tuesday's game without the services of senior center Samantha Blazetic, who went down with an apparent knee injury at the 11:18 mark of the first half.
 
In Blazetic's absence, it was Brown and Jackson who stepped up. Brown ignited the Boro offense in front of a raucous crowd of 513 fans with a game-high 25 points, adding six steals and six rebounds while handing out four assists. Jackson netted a season-high 22 points along with seven boards and five assists as well as three steals.
 
After Blazetic's injury, IUP was able to take advantage and run out to a 25-20 lead following a 3-pointer from Stamp. Edinboro answered with a 6-0 run to re-gain control, but the Crimson Hawks were able to take a 38-35 lead into intermission behind 17 first half points from Stamp, an Erie native.
 
A fast break bucket from Mathe gave IUP its largest lead at seven (44-37) just two and a half minutes into the second half, but Jackson answered by driving the lane and starting a 6-0 Boro break to trim the lead to only a point. IUP led until a Brown basket with 10:45 to play pushed the hosts ahead 50-49. The game would remain in doubt throughout until the final seconds with the teams sharing 13 ties with six lead changes.
 
Stamp keyed IUP's efforts with 24 points and nine rebounds. Pastorek added 16 points for the Crimson Hawks.
 
Edinboro recorded 17 steals while forcing IUP into 23 turnovers. The Crimson Hawks shot a red hot 59.3 percent (16-of-27) during the first half, but cooled to 46.4 percent (26-56) for the game. Edinboro shot 38.1 percent (24-63), but committed eight fewer turnovers (15). The free throw line provided another important statistic - the Fighting Scots set season highs in both free throws made (25) and attempted (33) for a 75.8 percent conversion rate while IUP struggled to 57.1 percent (16-28).
 
A number of players made strong contributions for the Scots – Freeland led the team with nine rebounds; Laurel Lindsay chipped in nine points and four steals; Baker recorded seven points and added strong defense as the Scots shifted to a smaller lineup.  
Next up is Friday's semifinal match at Bloomsburg. The Huskies earned hosting rights of the final four weekend by virtue of being the top seed from the East Division and easily moved on with an 81-52 thumping of Kutztown on Tuesday. Edinboro and Bloomsburg will square off in the 7:30 p.m. game after Gannon and Millersville meet in the 5:30 contest. Friday's winners advance to the championship game, scheduled for Saturday.
 
GAME NOTES: Jackson's 22 points were just two shy of her career-high of 24 set vs. California (Pa.) exactly two years ago to the day in the 2011 PSAC Championship. She also tied her career-high for field goals made (9) … Brown recorded her ninth 20-point effort of the season … Blazetic moved into 10th in Edinboro all-time scoring with six points, moving her to 1,361 for her career. She also tied Tammy Walker-Strode for fourth in rebounds (777) … Brown finished 11-for-13 at the line, tying career-highs in both categories, and now has 250 free throws made with Edinboro, good for 10th all-time in school history … Edinboro has now won seven straight games over IUP including three each the past two years. The Fighting Scots lead the all-time series, 45-36 and evened their PSAC Tournament record vs. the Crimson Hawks at 2-2.