SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – Senior point guard
Victoria Blackburn scored a career-high 25 points on Wednesday night and senior center
Kristin McGeough scored a career-high 14 points as the Shippensburg University women's basketball team posted a wire-to-wire victory over Lock Haven, 81-59, in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) matchup from Heiges Field House.
Shippensburg (2-12, 1-7 PSAC) opened the game on a 7-0 run, eventually securing a 21-10 lead at the end of the first quarter and a 39-30 halftime advantage. The Raiders shot 9-of-11 (82 percent) in the third quarter to lead by as many as 26 points in the second half. SU scored a season-high 42 points in the paint and finished the game shooting 52.7 percent from the field.
Blackburn was sensational Wednesday night, shooting 8-of-12 from the field and making a career best 7-of-7 from the free-throw line. She made a pair of three-pointers, marking the fourth straight game she has sank multiple three-pointers, and finished one shy of her career high in assists with five on the night.
McGeough totaled a career-high 14 points, nine rebounds and three blocks on 6-of-10 shooting despite missing the majority of the fourth quarter. It is her seventh game scoring double figures this season and her seventh game recording multiple blocks. She had nearly achieved a double-double by halftime, securing eight points and nine rebounds by the intermission.
Freshman
Ariel Jones extended her streak of scoring in double figures to 14 consecutive games to begin her career, finishing with 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting and 6-of-6 from the free-throw line.
Fellow freshman
Kryshell Gordy achieved another 5-5-5 scoring line, totaling five points, seven rebounds and five assists along with two blocks.
Off the bench, freshman
Lili Benzel posted double figures for the third time this season. Benzel scored 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting, including a pair of three-pointers.
Lock Haven (2-12, 1-9) got 16 points and eight rebounds off the bench from Ahnera Parker. Rileigh Devine hit three of LHU's six three-pointers to finish with 13 points. Bink Redman added 12 points. The visitors got 38 points from their bench and just 21 points from their starters.
In addition to a season-high 81 points, Shippensburg matched its season high with 18 assists. SU was 18-of-20 (90 percent) from the free-throw line and posted a positive assist-to-turnover ratio for the second straight game and the third time this season.
The Raiders have now won five straight matchups and seven of the last eight overall with the Bald Eagles. Wednesday's victory moved SU ahead of both Lock Haven and Cheyney into seventh place in the Eastern Division standings.
Shippensburg hosts Cheyney at 1 p.m. Saturday from Heiges Field House.
