Box Score (New/Sortable Format) GLENVILLE, W.Va. (March 17, 2014) – The No. 25 Edinboro women's basketball team defeated No. 14 Bloomsburg 82-76 in dramatic fashion on Monday night to capture the Atlantic Regional crown and advance to the Elite Eight.
Valerie Majewski and
Lauren Hippo combined to score the last 16 points of the game for the Fighting Scots to cap off a comeback in which they trailed by as much as 11 points in the second half. The Fighting Scots extended their winning streak to 11 games and now stand at 27-5 overall. They will head to Erie, Pa. to play Cal Poly Pomona on Tuesday, March 25 at 6:00 p.m. in the Erie Insurance Arena. Bloomsburg wrapped up its year at 26-5.
Edinboro trailed by as much as 12 points in the first half, down 34-22 with 3:36 left in the half after a layup by Brianna Dudeck. At the break, the Huskies led 42-33 while shooting 16-for-25 (64.0 percent) from the field. The Fighting Scots were 8-for-29 (27.6 percent). Free throw shooting helped keep the Scots in the game, as they were 14-for-15 (93.3 percent) from the free throw line in the first half.
The Fighting Scots cut the deficit down to two possessions on multiple occasions to open up the second half. They would take their first lead of the game behind a 10-0 run. Trailing 55-47, Majewski started the run with a layup at the 12:52 mark.
Aignee' Freeland made a pair of free throws, and following a Huskies turnover,
Nicole Johnson scored her lone basket on a layup.
Hippo made one of two free throws to pull the Scots to 55-54. Majewski capped off the run with a layup and was fouled. She converted the free throw to give the Scots their first lead of the game at 57-55 with 10:35 to play.
The two teams would exchange the lead back and forth before a 6-0 run by Bloomsburg was sparked by Catherine Noack's 3-pointer at the at the 9:54 mark. The Huskies led 64-59 with 8:27 left following a Dudeck 3-point play.
Edinboro would capture the lead for good with a 10-2 run. Freeland's layup cut the deficit to three points and
Darche' Jackson followed shortly after with a jumper that made it a 67-66 game with 4:48 remaining.
Dudeck extended the lead back to three points with 3:35 left, but from there Majewski and Hippo took over, as the duo scored Edinboro's final 16 points. Majewski nailed a 3-pointer to tie the game at 69-69. A minute later following a steal by Jackson, Hippo hit a 3-pointer from the right win to give the Scots a 72-69 lead with 2:24 showing on the clock.
Marla Simmons' layup would make it a 72-71 game 12 seconds later. The Scots turned to Majewski again and she delivered with a layup to extend the lead back to three points. Following a Bloomsburg miss, Hippo scored with 51 seconds to play to make it 76-71.
Back came the Huskies, as Noack drilled a 3-pointer with 38 seconds left to cut the Edinboro lead to 76-74. Hippo was fouled on the subsequent possession and made both free throw attempts to push the lead back to two possessions, ahead 78-74 with 30 seconds remaining.
Jocelyn Ford scored with 22 seconds left as the Fighting Scots' lead once again dwindled down to two points. Ahead 78-76, the Scots had Majewski at the free throw line with a chance to ice the game as she did in the PSAC Championship against Gannon. The junior guard made both free throws on her first trip and Noack came down and missed 3-pointer on the other end, Majewski made another pair of free throws with seven seconds remaining to deliver the final score of 82-76.
Majewski finished with 20 points on 5-for-11 shooting after missing all three of her field goal attempts in the first half. She scored nine points in the final 3 minutes, 15 seconds and was a perfect 9-for-9 at the charity stripe for the game. The University at Buffalo transfer was named to the All-Tournament team.
Hippo was the game's leading scorer with 23 points. The sophomore guard hit an array of clutch shots and scored seven of Edinboro's final 16 points. She finished 6-for-10 from the floor, 3-for-4 on 3-pointers, and 8-for-9 from the free throw line.
Jackson was accorded Atlantic Region Tournament MVP honors after capping off the Scots regional championship with 14 points on 5-for-11 shooting from the floor. She added two steals. For the Atlantic Regional, the senior guard averaged 16.3 ppg., 4.3 rpg., and 2.3 steals per game.
Freeland was the only other Scot to finish in double figures. The sophomore forward neared a double-double with 14 points and nine rebounds. Freeland was also key at the free throw line, making 8-for-9 from the charity stripe, including a perfect 4-for-4 in the second half.
Laurel Lindsay played all 40 minutes and had nine points, five rebounds and three assists.
Ford led the Huskies with 18 points. The All-Tournament team honoree went 8-for-12 from the floor and added seven rebounds and six assists.
Dudeck provided 17 points off the bench for Bloomsburg on 6-for-9 shooting.
The Fighting Scots had their hands full with Noack but held her to 15 points. That was the lowest scoring output in the Atlantic Regional for the PSAC East Athlete of the Year. The senior guard added five rebounds and was also named to the All-Tournament team.
Adreana Sadowski was the only other Huskies player to score in double figures. The sophomore scored 10 points.
Edinboro shot 57.7 percent in the second half to Bloomsburg's 42.9 percent. The Huskies still held the edge in shooting percentage at the end of the game at 52.8 percent to the Scots 41.8 percent.
The Fighting Scots went 31-for-34 (91.2 percent) from the free throw line. The free throws made and attempted were both the second-highest numbers Edinboro has had this season after shooting 32-for-44 (72.7 percent) against Pitt-Johnstown on February 1. Bloomsburg was 14-for-19 (73.7 percent) from the line.
Edinboro held a significant advantage in rebounds. The Scots outrebounded the Huskies 36-27, including an 11-3 advantage in offensive rebounds. Freeland's four offensive rebounds were more than the Huskies would have all game.
The Fighting Scots committed just 11 turnovers to the Huskies 14. Edinboro is now 25-1 this season when committing fewer turnovers than their opponent.
Edinboro will now meet the West Regional champions Cal Poly Pomona in the Elite Eight in the nearby Erie Insurance Arena. The Broncos are 25-6 and were the number one seed from the West Region. They seek their sixth Division II national championship. This is only the second time in school history the Fighting Scots have made the Elite Eight. The first appearance in the Elite Eight was 1997, as coach
Stan Swank's team suffered an 81-46 loss to North Dakota.
Game Notes: Edinboro's 11-game winning streak is tied for the fourth-longest in school history… the Fighting Scots' 27 wins are tied for the second-most in school history for a single season. The 2011-12 team won 31 games while reaching the Atlantic Regional championshipo before losing to Shaw …
Lauren Hippo is now shooting 45-for-89 on 3-pointers this season. That is good for a 50.6 percentage and she could become the first player in PSAC history to convert over 50 percent of her 3-pointers in a single-season (minimum 75 attempts)…
Valerie Majewski has now scored 520 points this season, tied for the 13
th-most in school history… Majewski has also made 61 3-pointers this season, the sixth-highest total in a season …
Laurel Lindsay is shooting 41.5 percent on 3-pointers, the fourth highest mark in school history…
Aignee' Freeland has pulled down 288 rebounds, the 12th-highest total in a season.
