Nov. 18, 2006

Stats

ERIE, Pa. - All five Mercyhurst starters scored in double digits as the Lakers picked up their first win of the year, 80-69, over Wheeling Jesuit.

Mercyhurst (1-1) led by just one, 48-47, in the second half before breaking the game open with a 20-2 run that gave the Lakers a 70-49 lead with 4:41 left to play.

Mercyhurst pounded Wheeling Jesuit on the glass, 40-20, and shot a blistering 61 percent from the floor, including 65 percent in the second half.

After a pair of free throws by Megan O'Donnell pulled the Wheeling Jesuit (0-2) to within one with 9:06 left in the game, Katlyn Petit scored four straight points to start the back-breaking run. The Lakers then forced four straight turovers by the Cardinals, three of which resulted in buckets by Rachel Divosevic.

In all, the Lakers held Wheeling to seven turnovers and no field goals - with just two attempts - over the course of 4:25 to put the game away.

Katie Repicky did her best to keep the Cardinals in the game, scoring nine of her game-high 27 in the final 2:17 as Wheeling Jesuit cut the final deficit to 11.

The Lakere built a 36-30 halftime lead after outrebounding the Cardinals 24-9 in the opening 20 minutes, resulting in a 10-0 advantage in second chance points. Erica Elliott had 12 of her 14 in the half. Repicky had 10 as Wheeling kept things close.

Julie Anderson paced the Lakers with 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting and grabbed seven boards. Divosevic finished with 15 points and had five rebounds.

Elliott hit 6-of-8 shots for 14 points and led Mercyhurst with nine boards. She also had three steals.

Stephanie Prischak scored all 14 of her points in the second half and added four steals. Katlyn Petit scored 13 poits and dished out four assists.

In addition to Repicky's 27 points on 9-of-20 shooting, two other Cardinals reached double figures. O'Donnell netted 16 points and nine boards, while Kristen King led all bench players with 11. She was 3-of-4 from long range.

The 80 points were the most for the Lakers since an 89-75 win over Daemen last December 19.

The last time the Lakers shot 60 percent in a game was a 83-56 win over Pitt-Bradford on December 9, 1994.

Mercyhurst will look to make it two in a row when the Lakers travel to Slippery Rock for a 7:00 PM tip on Tuesday, November 21.