Women's Basketball | 11/28/2021 5:33:00 PM
MIDDLETOWN, PA – Kaitlyn Walker posted her second straight double-double and was named the Most Valuable Player of the Penn State Harrisburg Tournament on Sunday as the St. John Fisher College women's basketball team dropped the Lions, 74-57, inside the Capital Union Building. With the win, Fisher, which is receiving votes in the latest D3hoops.com national poll, remained perfect on the season at 6-0 while the Lions fell to 4-3 with the defeat.
Walker finished with 13 points and a game-high 15 rebounds while Claire Kruszka, who was named to the All-Tournament Team, chipped in with 14 points, four boards and a pair of assists. Sidney Tomasso netted 12 points over 33 minutes while Lauren Nawojski contributed a career-high 12 points off the bench. Miranda Lynch added 11 points of her own in the win.
The Cardinals lead wire-to-wire in the game and held a 15-point edge in the second period before the Lions chipped away and bridged the second and third periods with a 13-0 run to pull to within two, 32-30.
With momentum beginning to favor the home team, Fisher responded and built its lead back to eight with four minutes having ticked by, but the tides shifted again with Penn State Harrisburg buckling down and scoring nine of the next 11 points to make it a one-point affair, 42-41.
As the game wore on, a lay-up by Kruszka gave Fisher some breathing room before the Cardinals scored eight unanswered points to open up a 15-point edge midway through the fourth quarter.
Holding a commanding lead, Fisher would see its advantage grow to as many as 24 points following seven straight makes at the free throw line by Lynch and Katie Moravec. With time winding down, the Lions ran out of steam as Fisher wrapped up the holiday break at 6-0.
Overall, the Cardinals were 24-of-59 (.407) from the floor and connected on a season-high 24 shots from the charity stripe. Fisher held the Lions to just 17 field goals in the win and forced Penn State Harrisburg in to 19 turnovers.
Fisher will look to extend its winning streak to seven games at 5 p.m. on Friday when it welcomes Clarkson to Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium and Bobby Wanzer Court for a non-conference showdown.