Jan. 6, 2014
By Tyler Feldman, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - All week head coach Coquese Washington had discussed the difficulty of playing on the road and the type of team it would be for her team at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. However, thanks to a height advantage, the No. 17/15 Lady Lions (10-3, 1-0) were victorious over the No. 23/22 Hawkeyes (12-4, 0-1), 87-71.
"This is a tough place to play," said Washington after the game. "Iowa gets great fan support. It was loud in there. They are a very high-powered offensive team, so for us to come in here and perform the way we did, I am pleased with that."
Due to Penn State's height advantage, the Lady Lions dominated every inch within the paint, out-rebounding the Hawkeyes, 50-34.
The substantial difference in the rebounding category allowed the Lady Lions to encounter a surplus of second-chance points, scoring 16 and allowing just one, and resulted in Penn State's 38-32 edge in point in the paint.
"I thought we did have a big advantage there [inside]," said Washington. "I thought our size, especially on the backboard, allowed us to get some good second chance opportunities."
Senior Talia East compiled her very first career double-double by tallying 10 rebounds and 10 points to lead the way for the Blue and White. She connected on 4-of-6 shots from the field and added one block and one assist in 21 minutes.
Additionally, a trio of Lady Lions also performed well inside. Junior Tori Waldner tallied 10 points and eight rebounds, adding one block to extend her streak of games with at least one block to 12. Dynamic freshmen Kaliyah Mitchell and Peyton Whitted combined for 12 points and 12 rebounds off the bench.
"We had some really good contributions from a lot of players on our team," said Washington. "We got into a little bit of foul trouble in the first half, and I thought our bench came in and our freshmen stepped up coming off the bench. They [the freshmen] gave us some big minutes and made some big plays. I was really pleased with the contributions that we got."
Even senior Dara Taylor got into the action down low. The quick-footed guard notched five rebounds to go along with her 17 points and four assists.
"Also, I would say Dara Taylor was a big part of today's win," said Washington. "She made a couple of great transition, coast-to-coast plays, and those kept us in the game, as well."
Although not part of the effort inside, it is important to note that senior Maggie Lucas led the offense with 27 points on 8-of-20 shooting. The 27 points moved Lucas into 12th place on the Big Ten all-time careering scoring list and included a 7-of-8 effort from the free throw line.
To open the Big Ten regular season with a challenging road win over a ranked opponent is just what this Lady Lions team needed as they get set to chase their third-straight Big Ten regular season title. With the win the Lady Lions are now 13-9 in Big Ten season openers and Big Ten road openers.
The Lady Lions will look to stretch their four game winning streak to five when they play Thursday, Jan. 9 at 9 p.m. in Champaign, Ill., against Big Ten foe Illinois.