Box Score
SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. - The Shippensburg women's basketball team used a 13-0 run midway through the second half of Saturday afternoon's PSAC Eastern Division contest with Mansfield to take control of a tied contest and ultimately record a 59-50 over the Mountaineers from Heiges Field House.
Shippensburg (11-10, 5-3 PSAC East) shot 44 percent from the field in the contest and overcame a slow first half by executing well down the stretch. With the score tied at 34-34 with 10:50 to play, the Lady Raiders began to break the Mansfield press and scored 13 points while the defense held Mansfield scoreless for the next seven minutes.
Junior forward
Lauren Beckley was vigilant in the post for Shippensburg, scoring 19 points and grabbing 18 rebounds for her 12th double-double in 20 games this season. Beckley finished one rebound short of her career-high that was set on Jan. 30, 2008 at IUP and was 8-of-14 from the field on Saturday.
Complementing Beckley with some secondary scoring was sophomore forward
Kasey Gardner, who finished with a team-high 20 points while hitting 4-of-6 from three-point range. Senior guard
Elise Mercer slashed through the lane for eight points, while freshman guard
Erin Varley was 7-of-10 from the free-throw line.
The recent hustle and hard work of junior forward
Shelley Wasser earned the second-year player her first career start on Saturday. While she did not score, Wasser continued her solid play and led Shippensburg with three assists to go along with three rebounds and a blocked shot in a career-high 20 minutes of play.
Mansfield (5-16, 1-7 PSAC East) was led offensively by Courtney Brooks, who was 5-of-8 from three-point range and finished with a game-high 21 points. The Mountaineers shot just 25 percent in the second half despite forcing 24 turnovers in the contest.
Shippensburg will conclude its three-game homestand from Heiges Field House at 6 p.m. on Wednesday when the Lady Raiders will host Millersville. With the Marauders dropping a 75-71 double-overtime decision on Saturday to West Chester, Wednesday night's game becomes all the more crucial. The winner of that game will move into the fourth and final playoff spot from the Eastern Division.
