Johnstown, Pa.—The Mercyhurst Women's Basketball team avenged a loss from earlier in the season when they defeated Pitt-Johnstown 65-45 in Johnstown on Monday night.
How it Happened
After Pitt-Johnstown scored first, the Lakers tied and quickly took a lead. Jayde Boyd scored the first six Mercyhurst points, and Emily Shopene, Grace Centrulla and Nicolette Arnold joined in to give the Lakers an 18-5 lead at 3:09 in the first quarter.
After the first quarter, the Lakers led 23-14.
Boyd again started the scoring in the second with a pair of layups. She was electric in the first half, finishing the first 20 minutes with 16 points and six rebounds as the Lakers led 35-22 at halftime.
It took nearly two minutes into the second half for Centrulla to nail a hook shot and open the scoring, but the Lakers kept a comfortable distance as they grew their lead to 54-31 after the third quarter.
The Lakers were outscoring UPJ 11-10 in the fourth, and with the game put away allowed the bench to get some action in the final minute. After the Mountain Cats made a free-throw and a three-pointer, the Lakers finished ahead 65-45.
By the Numbers
Boyd finished with 24 points and 11 rebounds to post her second consecutive double-double and fourth of the season. The trio of Boyd, Centrulla (12 points) and Julia Buchman (10 points) led all scorers Monday night.
Up Next
The Lakers have a narrow path to the playoffs, but they'll have to win their final two regular-season games, starting with a trip to California (Pa.) Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. The Vulcans were Receiving Votes in last week's D2SIDA national media poll.
