ELMIRA, N.Y. – Senior forward Alicia Kimmel scored the 1,000th point of her career and the Pitt-Bradford women's basketball team routed Elmira College, 71-47, on Saturday afternoon.
Kimmel finished her day with a team-high 20 points on 9-of-14 shooting. She tacked on four rebounds (one offensive, three defensive) and was a perfect 2-for-2 at the line.
Sophomore transfer Darien Lantz, playing in her first game in a Panther uniform, finished with 12 points, four rebounds and three assists. Junior Abby Brate rounded out the top performers with 10 points, two rebounds and two assists.
Pitt-Bradford (1-0) surrendered the first bucket of the game to the Soaring Eagles but quickly made up ground, and never trailed again for the duration of the contest.
The two squads battled back and forth for the first period, exchanging shots continuously. With five and a half minutes remaining until halftime, Kimmel scored the bucket that placed her in the Pitt-Bradford 1,000-point Club, an amazing accomplishment for the hard-working student-athlete.
Heading to the locker room, the Panthers led the Eagles 33-22. Pitt-Bradford shot 45.5 percent from the floor in the first period, including 1-of-2 from outside the arc. The Panthers were 2-of-3 from the stripe.
The second half belonged to Pitt-Bradford, as the Panthers built a commanding lead. The Eagles made a push midway through the period as they cut the deficit to nine points. The comeback attempt was short-lived however, as a surge of points for Pitt-Bradford put the Panthers in the driver's seat and they closed out the win.
"This was a great season opening win for us, especially because it was a total team effort," said head coach Patrick Daniel. "It started on the defensive end. I am extremely happy and proud of Alicia for being named the eighth player in school history to score 1,000 points."
For the game, Pitt-Bradford finished 43.1 percent from the floor and 86.7 percent from the free-throw line.
The Panthers return to the court on Tuesday, Nov. 18. Pitt-Bradford hosts its home opener versus Fredonia State at the KOA Arena at 6 p.m.
