by McKenzie Quirin

CRESSON, Pa. – In a matchup of nearby Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference rivals on Wednesday night at the Athletic Convocation and Wellness Center, the Penn State Altoona women's basketball team came out on top, defeating Mount Aloysius College 82-74.

After being down at the half, Penn State Altoona (11-9, 8-5 AMCC) was able to take the lead and outlast Mount Aloysius (9-11, 6-7 AMCC). The Mounties jumped out to an 18-10 advantage by the end of the first quarter, only to have the Lions cut their lead to one during the second quarter. Penn State Altoona established a lead in the third and fourth and executed the victory in a game that saw six ties and eight lead changes.

Avana Sayles (Venetia, PA/Peters Township) finished the night with her fifth double-double of the season, posting a career-high 28 points and team-high 11 boards. Jordan Bisignani (Pittsburgh, PA/Peters Township) added 20 points, four rebounds and four assists while going 6-for-6 from beyond the arc.

Jaidyn McCracken (Bellwood, PA/Bellwood-Antis) scored 13 points and had seven rebounds, six assists and three steals, while Jess Burns (South Fayette, PA/South Fayette) provided 12 points and two assists.

Mount Aloysius got 21 points and 10 rebounds from Molly Kosmack, while Jade Love-Morris ended her night with 19 points and eight rebounds.

Penn State Altoona started the game with a 2-0 lead after Sayles put the ball in on a jump shot after a Mounties turnover. A layup by Love-Morris got Mount Aloysius on the board, and they quickly took a 4-2 lead when Kosmack made her first jump shot. Burns evened the score at four in the game's first tie at 7:17, but the Mounties piled on the points over the next four minutes, as they led 15-4. A Bisignani three-pointer put the Lions within eight, down 15-7. With just one second above the one-minute mark, Burns posted a three-pointer to get Penn State Altoona closer to the Mounties' lead, making it 16-10. Love-Morris' jump shot added two to the Mounties' total, and they finished the first quarter up 18-10 over Penn State Altoona.

Love-Morris came into the second quarter firing up another two points from a layup to extend the Lions' deficit to 10 at 9:39. Although Mount Aloysius added two more points quickly, Sayles got three of her own for Penn State Altoona to get within nine, 22-13. A pair of free throws from Kosmack added to the Mounties' large lead, as the home team went up 24-13 with exactly eight minutes left in the second quarter. Going back and forth in scoring, Penn State Altoona managed to get closer to Mount Aloysius' lead, getting within five, 26-21, by 5:31. As the clock ticked down, Sayles put in a jump shot and free throw to cut their deficit to one, and Bisignani nailed a three-pointer to put Penn State Altoona on top by two, 32-30. The Mounties tied the game up at 32, but Chelsea McCaulsky's (Bellwood, PA/Bellwood-Antis) free throw got the Lions their lead back. That was short-lived, though, as Kosmack scored a layup and Mount Aloysius ended the second quarter up one, 34-33.

Burns netted her second three-pointer of the night to start the third quarter, and Penn State Altoona was in front again, leading 36-34. Sayles increased the Lions' lead to 38-34 after putting in a layup. The Lions began to take over, as McCracken notched her first three-pointer at 8:01, while Sayles kept the scoring going with a jump shot which helped Penn State Altoona get ahead 43-36. Bisignani made it a 10-point game after making a three-pointer, and another McCracken three-pointer extended Penn State Altoona's lead to 11 points, 51-40, at 4:06. Mount Aloysius closed the gap to one late in the quarter, but a Bisignani three-pointer and Sayles layup helped Penn State Altoona to a 58-52 lead by the end of the third quarter.

Love-Morris made a pair of free throws to cut the Mount Aloysius deficit to four early in the fourth quarter, but Bisignani put in a three-pointer at the 8:59 mark, getting Penn State Altoona up 61-54. With her fourth three-pointer of the half, Bisignani extended the Lions' lead to 64-54 exactly 47 seconds later. Sayles put in a pair of free throws and a layup to help Penn State Altoona to a 14-point lead, 68-54, by the 6:14 mark. The Mounties cut their deficit to seven points two minutes later, but Burns and the Lions did not let that derail their hopes for victory, as Burns put in another three-pointer with 3:49 left in the fourth to make it 71-61. McCracken added two more points to put Penn State Altoona up 73-61, and they held on to get the win, 82-74. Mount Aloysius got close in the fourth quarter, but the home team could not slow the Lions' offense, as Penn State Altoona finished the game with 12 three-pointers, tying for the fourth-most threes made in a game in team history.

Next up, the Penn State Altoona women's basketball team will travel to compete against AMCC opponent Alfred State College this Saturday, February 3 at 2 p.m.