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| Lady Lion head coach Rene Portland laughs with Brianne O'Rourke after the Lions' 65-51 win over Michigan on Sunday. The victory is Portland's 600th at Penn State. She is one of nine coaches in Division I history to win 600 games at one institution. |
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA.; January 14, 2007 ?? Head coach Rene Portland joined an elite group of coaches as the Lady Lion mentor collected her 600th win at Penn State after the Lady Lions notched a 65-51 win over Michigan Sunday in front of 6,904 raucous fans at the Bryce Jordan Center. Portland is now one of nine coaches to accumulate 600 wins at one institution, joining Pat Summit (Tennessee), Jodi Conradt (Texas), Kay Yow (N.C. State), Andy Landers (Georgia), Robin Selvig (Montana), Debbie Ryan (Virginia), Mike Granelli (St. Peter??s) and Geno Auriemma (Connecticut).
Junior guard Kam Gissendanner (Clairton, Pa.) continued her stellar play against Big Ten competition with a game-high 21 points to go along with four rebounds and a blocked shot. Senior post player Amanda Brown (Kennett Square, Pa.), who was honored before the game for reaching the 1,000-point mark for her career, registered her career-high seventh double-double of the season with 12 points and 14 rebounds. She also rejected two shots and dished out four assists to reach 100 for her career. Freshman guard Tyra Grant (Youngstown, Ohio) added 17 tallies off the bench, while sophomore point guard Brianne O??Rourke (Pittsburgh, Pa.) accounted for six points, five rebounds and four assists.
Leading by eight points at halftime, the Lady Lions continued to keep the margin at eight to 10 points during the early parts of the second frame, but Grant scored eight-straight points including a three-pointer that electrified the crowd to give PSU a 41-27 lead at the 12:37 mark. The Wolverines bounced back with a triple by Carly Benson before Mashea Williams (Erie, Pa.) rippled the net for her first three-pointer of the season to extend the Lady Lion lead back to 14 points (44-30). Another Grant three-pointer moved the lead to 15 points at 49-34 with 8:05 remaining in the game. The Lady Lions would hold serve the rest of the way and connect on its free throws down the stretch en route to the 14-point win.
The Lady Lions got out to a great start as Gissendanner scored seven of first eight Penn State points which was part of a greater 18-5 run to open the contest. Grant was also a catalyst for the Lady Lions during the run, scoring six points. The Lady Lions extended the lead to 15 points at 24-9 with 6:55 remaining in the first half, but Michigan would not go quietly as the Wolverines went on a 7-0 run to cut the lead back to eight points at 24-16. Gissendanner??s three-pointer at the 3:50 mark gave PSU a 28-16 lead, but the Lady Lions would not score again in the half and entered the locker room with a 28-20 lead. Gissendanner finished the first half with 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting, while Brown accumulated eight rebounds, four assists and a blocked shot in the opening period. Grant was the Lady Lions?? second-best scoring threat in the first period with six points and three rebounds.
Nine different players scored in the game for Michigan, led by Ta??shia Walker who was the lone Wolverine in double figures with 10 points.
After a bye date, the Lady Lions will travel to Minnesota Jan. 21 before returning to the Bryce Jordan Center to face nationally-ranked Michigan State (Jan. 25) and Iowa (Jan. 28).
Single-game tickets for the Lady Lions may be purchased by visiting the ticket section of GoPSUsports.com or by calling the ticket office at 814-865-5555. Women's single game tickets are $12 for adults and $5 for students and youth (under 18).