BRADFORD, Pa. – The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford women's basketball team picked up its third-straight win Saturday, 68-54, over Franciscan at the KOA Arena.
"It was another team win for us today with four players scoring in double figures," Head Coach Sharay Hall said. "It wasn't pretty, as Franciscan played us close, but our push as a team in the fourth quarter and team defense helped us pull away."
Ali Rinfrette led the Panthers with 19 points while Shaelyn Snipes and Etreece Adams scored 14 points apiece. Jennifer Isenberg scored 10 points to round out the Panthers scoring in double-figures.
Adams also led the game with 13 rebounds for her first-career double-double. Her 14 points also set a new career-high.
With the win, the Panthers improve to 7-5 in AMCC play and move their win total to double-digits with a 10-8 overall record.
Pitt-Bradford is on a three-game winning streak and has won six of its last seven games.
Rinfrette took on the majority of the scoring in the first quarter with 12 points, connecting on all three of her three-point attempts and converting on a conventional three-point play.
Bri Wells tossed five assists in the quarter, helping Pitt-Bradford to a 20-11 lead heading into the second quarter.
The Pitt-Bradford defense held Franciscan to 26.7 percent from the floor (4-15) in the opening quarter.
Pitt-Bradford cooled down a bit in the second and the Barons hit four three-pointers in the quarter to close the deficit.
Snipes scored five points, including a three-pointer, to lead the Panthers in the quarter.
Three-straight points from Franciscan at the free-throw line to close out the half sent the two teams into the break with the Panthers ahead, 32-27.
Franciscan once again outscored the Panthers in the third. Each team hit five field goals but the Barons connected on three from long range and Pitt-Bradford went 2-7 on three-point field goals.
A Barons' three-pointer at the 4:00 mark cut the Pitt-Bradford lead to 39-37.
But Adams corralled a Rinfrette miss and went back up for the hoop-and-the-harm to put Franciscan back to a two-possession deficit, 41-37, with 3:38 left in the third.
A three-ball from Allison Guengerich at the 2:40 mark put the Panthers ahead 45-37 with under three minutes to play.
Five-straight Franciscan points to close out the third sent the two teams into the fourth quarter separated by just three points, 45-42.
But Pitt-Bradford turned it on in the fourth quarter, outscoring Franciscan 23-12 to close out the win.
The Pitt-Bradford forwards got it done in the fourth as Adams led the way with seven points and Isenberg scored six. Adams also grabbed five boards in the period.
Pitt-Bradford started the fourth quarter on an 8-0 run as Snipes and Guengerich each knocked down three-pointers and Isenberg laid one in to extend Pitt-Bradford's lead to 53-42 a minute-and-a-half into the quarter.
Later following a defensive stop, Rinfrette hit a three-pointer in front of her own bench off an assist from Wells to put the Panthers up double-digits, 61-50, with 4:21 left to play.
Buckets from Adams, Isenberg and Snipes down the stretch helped hold off the Barons and the Panthers held on, 68-54.
Wells led the game with eight assists while Rinfrette was second on the team with six.
Pitt-Bradford forced 19 turnovers and grabbed 10 steals as a team. Rinfrette and Isenberg had three apiece.
The Panthers out-rebounded Franciscan, 44-40. In addition to Adams' total, Rinfrette, Isenberg and Aiyana Waddell had five apiece.
Up next, Pitt-Bradford will look to extend its winning streak as D'Youville comes to the KOA Arena Wednesday.
