JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – A strong defensive performance by the 15th-ranked Edinboro women's basketball team gave the Fighting Scots a clean sweep to end their three-game road trip with a 76-53 win over Pitt-Johnstown at the UPJ Sports Center on Wednesday. The Fighting Scots, now winners of four in a row, move into a first place tie with IUP California(Pa.) in the PSAC standings at 17-2 overall and 13-2 in the PSAC West. For the Mountain Cats, they dropped their fifth straight contest and now stand at 8-13 and 5-11 in conference play.
Edinboro ranks 15th in the WBCA Top 25 and is among teams "also receiving votes" in the D2SIDA Top 25. The Fighting Scots have held their last four opponents to under 55 points, and six of their last seven conference foes to under 57 points.
After ending the first quarter with a 17-15 lead, Edinboro outscored Pitt-Johnstown 22-9 in the second period.
Michelle Jahn's layup to start the stanza was blocked by Gabrielle Smith and resulted in a 3-pointer by Tori Moreland on the opposite end. Moreland's basket put the Mountains Cats back on top at 18-17, marking their first lead since 6-4 early in the contest.
Ciara Rosten responded with a layup on Edinboro's next possession, and the Fighting Scots embarked on a 17-2 run over nearly six minutes of action. Rosten's layup gave Edinboro the lead for the remainder of the game.
Edinboro concluded the opening half up 39-24, shooting 52.9 percent (18-of-34) from the floor, including 62.5 percent in the second quarter alone. The Fighting Scots also connected on 3-of-6 3-pointers and scored 19 points off 12 Mountain Cat turnovers. However, they did not attempt a free throw in the first 20 minutes. UPJ converted on 38.5 percent (10-of-26) of its baskets, and shot 2-for-4 on 3-pointers and at the charity stripe.
The Fighting Scots continued their defensive performance into the second half, holding UPJ to nine field goals in the two periods. Edinboro's lead was never cut to single digits, and led by as much as 26 points with 3:54 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Edinboro shot 46.4 percent (32-of-69) on the night, 6-of-19 from long range and went 6-of-10 from the line. Their six free throws made is a season-low and the 10 free throws attempted is tied for the fewest this season. Pitt-Johnstown converted on 34.5 percent (19-of-55) of its shots, in addition to making 4-of-12 3-pointers and 11-of-16 free throws.
Ciara Rosten led all players with 16 points and 15 rebounds, as she registered her 10th double-double of the season, to go with three blocks for the fourth consecutive game. The 6'2" forward also tied her career-best of six offensive boards, which was set earlier this season against the Mountain Cats at McComb Fieldhouse.
Jontay Walton,
Michaela Barnes and
Ayana Vaughn also scored in double figures for Edinboro. Walton scored 14 points, dished out four assists, had four steals and committed zero turnovers in 33 minutes played. Barnes added 11 points and had three takeaways, while Vaughn scored 10 points.
Whitney Allen was second on the team in rebounds, as she collected eight boards, including five offensively.
Smith led the Mountain Cats with 13 points, and grabbed seven rebounds. Olivia McCabe and Nicole Olkosky each contributed 10 points apiece in the loss. McCabe brought down a team-best eight rebounds, including five on the offensive glass. Alexis Hartwick added three steals.
Turnovers and points in the paint were two categories that were in Edinboro's advantage. The Scots forced UPJ into 22 turnovers, capitalizing them for 34 points, while UPJ tallied seven points off 11 Edinboro mistakes. In the paint, Edinboro doubled the Mountain Cats score in the paint, 44-22.
Edinboro returns to McComb Fieldhouse on Saturday for a top 15 battle against No. 14 California(Pa.). Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.
