Dec. 6, 2007
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Lady Lions (6-3) struggled from the field for a majority of the game on the way to a 72-53 loss at Syracuse (6-1) Thursday night. Penn State falls to 16-2 all-time against the Orange and ironically, both losses to SU came on Dec. 6.
Mashea Williams (Erie, Pa.) had a game-high 18 points in the loss, while Kam Gissendanner (Clairton, Pa.) added eight tallies and a game-best 10 rebounds.
The Lady Lions looked sluggish in the early portion of the first half as the Orange jumped out to a 16-4 lead by the second media timeout. To that point, Penn State was shooting just 8% from the field and could only manage two free throws from Rashida Mark (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and a jumper by Gissendanner.
Penn State went on a 7-0 run, which included three points by Williams and baskets by Gissendanner and Meredith Monroe (Olney, Md.), to cut the Syracuse lead to seven points at 18-11 with just over seven minutes remaining. However, the Orange would build the lead back to 17 points at halftime (35-18) thanks in part to back-to-back three-pointers by Erica Marrow. The Lady Lions shot just 21.4% from the field in the first half.
The Lady Lions scored the first basket of the second half on a lay-up by Williams, but the Orange would score the next six points before another Williams basket made it 41-22 with just over 16 minutes left in the game. After a three-point play by Tyra Grant (Youngstown, Ohio) and a lay-up by Williams brought the Syracuse lead back to 42-27 with 14 minutes remaining. However, Syracuse would reel off a 9-0 run to extend its lead to 24 points (51-27).
The two teams swapped baskets before Evelyn Lewis (Hampton, Va.) scored her first collegiate points on a pair of free throws with 8:14 left in the game. Penn State would surge in the final 1:45 with four points by Grant and five points by Brianne O'Rourke (Pittsburgh, Pa.), but the Orange did not many errors down the stretch on the way to the win.
The Lady Lions return to the Jordan Center for a two-game homestand against Georgetown on Sunday at 3 p.m. and Mississippi on Thursday, Dec. 13 at 8 p.m. The game against the Hoyas marks the return of former Lady Lions Terri Williams-Flournoy, who is currently the Georgetown head coach. Penn State rounds out its non-conference schedule at Bucknell on Saturday, Dec. 15 at 7 p.m.
Fans can purchase single-game tickets 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. The second annual THINK PINK Day is slated for Sunday, Feb. 10 versus Iowa at noon. For more information on THINK PINK Day, visit Penn State's official THINK PINK website at www.gopsusports.com/thinkpink.