Bradford, Pa. -- The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford women's basketball team held off a second-half charge by Alfred State on Wednesday night as they ended a 7-game winless streak with a 73-61 over the Pioneers.
The Panthers fell behind at the start but quickly answered as Alexa Ackerman stepped into a three to get the Panthers on the World. After a Pioneers hit a layup with 7 minutes left, Raquel Sewell finished a layup of her own and the Panthers scored 5 straight from the line to go ahead 10-4. Yasmine Abu-Aiadeh made a three to give the Panthers an 8-point lead before Alfred State scored 5 of 7 to cut the Panther advantage to 5. Pitt-Bradford finished the quarter strong with five unanswered as Katie Woolson drilled a three and McKenna Kelly hit a pair from the line.
Ackerman started the 2nd quarter off with a pull-up long ball but quickly saw her effort matched with a three at the other end. Following another exchange of baskets Ackerman made back-to-back threes, pushing the Panther lead to 14, forcing a Pioneer timeout. The visitors were able to slowly chip away at the lead, getting the deficit back into single digits, but McKenna Kelly made two baskets inside and Ackerman added a fast break layup to keep Pitt-Bradford in front. The Pioneers closed the half with three straight free throws to send the game to the break with the Panthers ahead 41-33.
Pitt-Bradford came out of the locker room firing, as they scored the first 7 points of the 2nd half. Ackerman started the run with a three, and then Paige Gratto made two free throws and a layup, forcing another Alfred State timeout. The Pioneers responded after the timeout, limiting the Panthers to only 3 points in 5 and a half minutes, cutting the lead to 4. Ackerman made another three to slow the rally and Amber Cross and Gratto made baskets in the last minute of the quarter to keep the Panthers ahead by 6 moving into the final period.
In the 4th, the Panthers struggled to finish by the basket, as they were held without a field goal for the first 8 minutes of the quarter. They were able to maintain their lead, however, as they converted 6 of 9 from the line while limiting the Pioneers to 7 points in the same stretch. Paige Gratto was able to make a layup after a huge offensive rebound from Avery Benzel to keep the lead at 7. The Pioneers quickly answered with a layup of their own, but the Panthers clamped down in the final minute, forcing a miss from three and a pair of turnovers which led to three free throws and a fast-break layup.
Alexa Ackerman led all scorers with 25 points. She made 8-19 from the field, including 6-11 from beyond the arc. She also had 8 steals and 2 assists. McKenna Kelly had a huge first half for the Panthers, scoring 15 of her 16 points in the first two quarters. Paige GRatto also reached double figures despite being limited early due to foul trouble. She finished with 15 points and 7 rebounds. Raquel Seell grabbed 10 rebounds for the Panthers.
The win moves the Panthers to 5-8 on the season with a 2-4 record in AMCC play. They will return to action on Saturday with a road matchup at Pitt-Greensburg. Tipoff is slated for 2:00 p.m.
