With playoff berth clinched, Hazleton cruises to victory over Penn State Scranton

HAZLETON, Pa. - All five Penn State Hazleton starters finished in double figures as the Lady Lions completed a season sweep of regional rival Penn State Scranton with an 85-36 win on Wednesday night in the Dr. Thomas M. Caccese Gymnasium.

With a playoff berth in hand after a loss by Penn State Greater Allegheny on Monday, Hazleton shored up a home playoff game with their win on Wednesday.

Hazleton (17-2, 10-0 PSUAC) was led by senior Alexis Daly (Wyalusing, Pa.) with 22 points and 12 rebounds, her eighth double-double of the season. Freshman McKenzie Prutsman (Jasper, NY) added 20 points and four assists while sophomore Jacqlyn Siva-Harrison (South Brunswick, NJ) chipped in 13 points and seven boards. Sophomore Kamryn Dodd (Stevensville, Md.) and junior Stephanie Guevara (North Brunswick, NJ) rounded out the double figure crew with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Dodd also added eight rebounds while Guevara dished out five assists. 

The Lady Lions dominated nearly every statistical category and despite trailing midway through the first quarter, Hazleton would steadily extend their lead over the final 34 minutes. 

1st Half

Hazleton jumped out to an early 4-0 advantage, but found themselves trailing 5-4 after six straight possessions without a bucket. Siva-Harrison quickly gave Hazleton the lead once again with a three with 5:05 left in the first quarter. The Lady Lions would not trail again. The three sparked an 18-2 run to end the first.

Each team went scoreless for nearly two minutes to start the second quarter until Guevara hit a jumper, then proceeded to steal the ball on Scranton's ensuing possession and took it to the rim for a lay-up and a 26-7 lead. After trading baskets over the next several minutes, Hazleton eventually took a 39-17 lead into the half.

2nd Half

Daly put on a clinic in the first two minutes of the third quarter, notching five straight lay-ups for Hazleton's first 10 points of the half.

The Lady Lions slowly extended their lead, and freshman Kassie Ferdinand (Mountain Top, Pa.) hit a three to put Hazleton up 40 with 6:15 remaining in the game.

Top Performers

Scranton was led by Jordan Peters with 16 points. Mikaela Brutico added seven points and five rebounds.

Daly finished with another double-double and added to her career points total. She now sits at 1,638 career points, extending her lead as the all-time leading scorer in Penn State Hazleton history.

Siva-Harrison built on her strong performance from Saturday night at Penn State Lehigh Valley, notching her second straight game in double figures, a first for her all season.

Next Up: Penn State York comes to town for a 6:00 p.m. tip on Thursday, Feb. 4th for the make-up of a game originally scheduled for Jan. 24th. The Lady Lions need to win two of their final four games to clinch a first round bye and a home game in the semifinals of the PSUAC tournament.