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 Casey Banks hauled in crucial rebounds down the stretch. |
Dec. 3, 2005
ERIE, Pa. - Wayne State (3-4, 1-1 GLIAC) was held to just eight points in overtime, all on free throws, and couldn't get the final bounce as Mercyhurst (1-6, 1-1 GLIAC) hung on for a 90-89 OT win in women's GLIAC basketball Saturday afternoon in Erie, Pa.
Junior Ralphanee Peyton (Detroit, Mich.) had two blocks and a basket in the first two minutes of the game as WSU led 4-2. Tied at four, WSU missed five straight shots on one possession, but pounded the offensive glass and finally got a Nicole Rogers (Lansing, Mich.) shot to fall. Another Peyton layup put the Warriors up 9-4 with 14:42 on the clock.
Freshman point guard Joy Nash (Muskegon, Mich.) drove the lane and laid it off the glass for a 15-6 lead. The Lakers charged back with a 9-2 run the next 3:08 until Brittany White (Chicago, Ill.) knocked down a three on a Cherita Smith (Grand Rapids, Mich.) assist. A pair of steals then led to four Smith points in a row that pushed WSU's lead to 24-15 with 8:41 left.
A Kristen Rogers (Lansing, Mich.) three-pointer at the 5:15 point gave Wayne State its largest lead of the first half at 33-20. Mercyhurst answered with a 9-1 run over the next 2:45 and eventually came within one (38-37) before Kristen Rogers nailed a three to give WSU a 41-37 lead at the lead.
MC opened the second half on a 14-7 sprint as Cassie Seth's back-to-back three-pointers gave the Lakers their first lead of the game. Mercyhurst held onto its lead for 5:04 until senior Casey Banks (Detroit, Mich.) converted a three-point play and put the Warriors up by one with 10:37 remaining.
The Lakers regained their lead and increased it to six points before Clark hit a three with 5:43 to play, cutting the deficit to one at 70-69. Then Kristen Rogers' third three-pointer of the day gave WSU the lead again until another tie at 74 occurred with just over four minutes to play.
Banks scored on a three-point play as she got the friendly bounce and made the foul shot. After two defensive stops, Banks sank another shot for a 79-74 lead with 2:08 left. MC hit a pair of free throws and Laker Katlyn Petit hit a three-pointer for the fifth tie of the half.
Nash made a pair of foul shots, but MC's Jena Schafer hit a jumper in the lane to knot the score at 81. Following a WSU timeout, Clark's final shot didn't fall, sending the game into overtime.
Most of the OT scoring came at the line as the Warriors took an early four-point lead on free throws by Clark and Banks. Then Mercyhurst grabbed a one-point lead back with just under a minute to play until Clark sank two from the line with 43.0 seconds left.
After Stephanie Prischak hit a layup for MC with 27.3 ticks left, Clark missed both free throws. Banks grabbed the rebound, but Nash's last-second three-pointer hit the left side of the rim and bounced out as the Lakers picked up their first win of the season and second straight win over WSU.
Clark had a team-high 19 points and eight rebounds with Nash scoring a career-best 16 points. Banks, Smith and Kristen Rogers all chipped in with 11 points as the Warriors went 23-of-32 at the line compared to 34-of-42 for the Lakers.
The Warriors have a week off before continuing their four-game road trip at Hillsdale College on Dec. 10.
