Nov. 25, 2007
Box Score | Quotes | Photo Gallery | Lady Lion Press Conference Podcast
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA. - The Lady Lions shot 45.7% from the field en route to a 66-60 victory over Drexel (1-4) in front of more than 4,550 fans at the Bryce Jordan Center Sunday to improve to 5-1 on the season.
Tyra Grant (Youngstown, Ohio) was 5-for-9 from the field and 5-for-6 from the free throw line en route to a team-high 16 points to lead four Lady Lions in double figures. She also pulled down four rebounds and four assists on the day. Kam Gissendanner (Clairton, Pa.) and Brianne O'Rourke (Pittsburgh, Pa.) added 13 points apiece, while Mashea Williams (Erie, Pa.) accounted for 11 tallies and five assists.
Both teams were sluggish in the early-going and were tied at 8-8 eight minutes into the game, before Penn State went on a quick 6-0 run thanks to four points by O'Rourke and two tallies by Janessa Wolff (Park Rapids, Minn.). After a Brooke Cornish lay-up, Penn State extended the lead to 10 points (20-10) on back-to-back three-pointers by Gissendanner and O'Rourke.
Drexel began chipping away at the Lady Lion lead and held Penn State scoreless for the final 4:07 of the half, which led to 6-0 Drexel run to close the opening period. The Dragon run sent the teams into the break with Penn State holding a 30-28 lead.
O'Rourke finished the first half with 12 points, including a trio of three-pointers, while Rashida Mark (Brooklyn, N.Y.) added four points and five rebounds in the first frame. Gabriella Marginean paced Drexel with 16 points in the opening period.
The Dragons tied the game just 31 seconds into the second half as Marginean knocked down a pair of free throws and then took the lead on a three-pointer by Marginean with just under 19 minutes to play. However, a Gissendanner lay-up and two free throws by Williams moved the Lady Lions ahead by one at 34-33 with 18:01 on the clock.
The teams continued to swap baskets for the next minute and a half before a Delise Johnson lay-up gave Drexel its largest lead of the game at 39-36 with 16:30 left to play. However, the Lady Lions would hold the Dragons scoreless for the next seven minutes en route to establishing a 10-point lead (49-39) with 9:37 on the clock. During the run, Grant accounted for seven points as she connected on a three-pointer, converted on a lay-up off of a Gissendanner steal and then made a nifty over-the-shoulder lay-up on an offensive rebound. Williams was also a solid contributor during the Lady Lion run with four points, including a three-point play from under the basket with 10:18 left in the game.
Jasmina Rosseel connected on a three-pointer to snap the 13-0 Penn State run and cut the lead to 49-42 with just over nine minutes remaining. Grant drained a pair of free throws, but the Dragons would make the game's next two baskets to slice the Penn State lead to five points (51-46) with 6:44 on the clock. On the next possession, Grant netted a jumper to move the lead back to seven points and Julia Trogele (Devon, Pa.) recorded a three-point play on a rebound and put-back with 5:37 to play to make it a 10-point margin (56-46).
The Dragons would not go away as Rosseel drained a shot from beyond the arc and converted on a steal and lay-up to cut the lead to five points with just over four minutes to go. The Lady Lions brought the lead back to a comfortable margin with free throws by Gissendanner, Williams and Grant and continued to lead by seven points until Narissa Suber hit a three-pointer and Marginean hit on a jumper in the lane to make it a 64-60 game with 32 seconds left. The Lady Lions sealed the win with a free throw each by O'Rourke and Gissendanner in the final moments.
The Lady Lions visit Old Dominion on Thursday night at 7 p.m., before returning to the Jordan Center to face nationally-ranked Duke in the inaugural Big Ten/ACC Women's Basketball Challenge on Sunday, Dec. 2 at 5 p.m.
This season, Penn State introduces a new seven-game Lady Lion Flex Plan package where fans will receive a ticket to the Duke (Sun., Dec. 2) and Georgetown (Sun., Dec. 9) games and the second annual THINK PINK Day versus Iowa (Sun., Feb. 10), as well as four flex vouchers to redeem in any ticket combination for Big Ten games. Fans can purchase single-game tickets or flex plan packages by visiting the Bryce Jordan Center box office, calling 814-865-5555 or 800-863-3336 or by clicking on the ticket link on www.GoPSUsports.com.
GAME NOTES: Junior Brianne O'Rourke surpassed the 500-point plateau for her career with 13 tallies...Senior Kam Gissendanner reached the 900-point mark for her Penn State career with 13 points...Freshman Julia Trogele established a career-high with five points.