Colonial States Athletic Conference

• Standings
• Poll
• Statistics
• Awards
• Championship Results (Quick View)
• Championship Stories

PAC North Division

Institution	PAC	Overall
(1) Gwynedd-Mercy	16-0	25-4
(4) Alvernia	11-5	14-13
Misericordia	9-7	15-10
Arcadia	7-9	12-13
Marywood	3-13	6-19
Cedar Crest	1-15	3-18

PAC South Division

Institution	PAC	Overall
(2) Wesley	13-3	19-9
(3) Immaculata	11-5	17-9
(5) Cabrini	10-6	11-15
(6) Neumann	9-7	12-15
Rosemont	6-10	10-11
Eastern	0-16	2-23

* - Clinched berth in PAC Tournament, number at left indicates seed;
PAC Tournament Champion in Bold

Back to Top

Aston, PA – Alvernia College’s women's basketball team has been selected as the pre-season favorite in the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) coaches poll. The defending-champion Lady Crusaders received 10 of 12 first-place votes and earned 70 points in the poll to outpoint 2004-05 runner-up Gwynedd-Mercy College.

Misericordia University (48), Marywood University (34), Arcadia University (26) and Cedar Crest College (21) rounded out the voting in the North.

In the South, Cabrini College was selected as the runner-up with 62 points, followed by Rosemont College (41), Eastern University (35), Neumann College (24) and Immaculata University (23).

PAC North

Institution (First Place vote)	Points
Alvernia (10)	70
Gwynedd-Mercy (2)	62
Misericordia	48
Marywood	34
Arcadia	26
Cedar Crest	12

PAC South

Institution (First Place vote)	Points
Wesley	67
Cabrini	62
Rosemont	41
Eastern	35
Neumann	24
Immaculata	23

Back to Top

2005-06 Women's Basketball Final Statistics

Scoring		G	FG	3FG	FT	PTS	Avg		Field Goal %		G	FG	FGA	Pct
1. T'Neisha Turner	Wes	28	140	58	177	631	22.5		1. Ashley Vandiver	GMC	29	110	199	.552
2. Nellie Mixon	Neu	27	159	10	116	464	17.2		2. Mandy Reinhart	Alv	27	132	251	.525
3. Kirsten Patton	Neu	27	166	0	80	412	15.3		3. Jackie Dougherty	GMC	29	123	245	.502
4. Tricia Casarotto	Wes	28	193	1	33	422	15.1		4. Jenell Fort	CM	8	32	65	.492
5. Katie Linder	Ros	17	94	0	59	247	14.5		5. Cecelia Saunders	Ros	20	93	190	.489
6. Ericka Morrison	CM	23	116	2	78	316	13.7		6. Rebecca Frederick	GMC	14	35	73	.479
7. Alicia Woodruff	Mar	15	57	4	74	200	13.3		7. Tricia Casarotto	Wes	28	194	409	.474
8. Amy Hughes	CM	10	38	4	45	133	13.3		8. Kirsten Patton	Neu	27	166	354	.468
9. Mandy Reinhart	Alv	27	88	44	46	354	13.1		9. Katie Lynch	Arc	25	86	186	.462
10. Caitlin Sparks	Arc	9	44	0	28	116	12.9		10. Katie Linder	Ros	17	94	205	.458
11. Becky Soda	Arc	24	94	17	68	307	12.8
12. Raya Shores	Eas	23	79	15	81	284	12.3		Three Pt FG %		G	3Pt	3PA	Pct
13. Jillian Chiarantona	GMC	29	56	67	41	354	12.2		1. Jenna Dougherty	GMC	1	3	4	.750
14. Caity Hadzimichalis	Mar	25	110	0	75	295	11.8		2. Michelle Lutzkanin	Alv	20	18	40	.450
15. Mary Kate Pawlowski	Imm	20	91	1	48	233	11.7		3. Mandy Reinhart	Alv	27	44	102	.431
16. Cecelia Saunders	Ros	20	92	1	44	231	11.6		4. Lauren Fortna	Alv	26	40	93	.430
17. Jackie Dougherty	GMC	29	104	19	69	334	11.5		5. Kristy Cramp	GMC	28	74	176	.420
18. Kristy Cramp	GMC	28	33	74	26	314	11.2		6. Syreeta Brown	Neu	27	50	129	.387
19. Patrice Freeman	Eas	24	61	25	72	269	11.2		7. Jillian Chiarantona	GMC	29	67	184	.364
20. Dominique Murray	Imm	26	94	0	96	284	10.9		8. Kylynn McNichol	Neu	27	29	80	.362
									9. Ashley Shrawder	Alv	25	21	67	.313
									10. Jackie Dougherty	GMC	29	19	61	.311
Rebounding		G	Off	Def		Rebs	Avg		Free Throw %		G	FT	FTA	Pct
1. Alicia Woodruff	Mar	15	47	117		164	10.9		1. T'Neisha Turner	Wes	28	177	217	.815
2. Kirsten Patton	Neu	27	111	166		277	10.3		2. Ashley Vandiver	GMC	29	70	87	.804
3. Katie Lynch	Arc	25	109	143		252	10.1		3. Katie Linder	Ros	17	59	75	.786
4. Jacey Bray	Eas	25	55	149		204	8.2		4. Becky Soda	Arc	24	68	88	.772
5. Jen Skursky	Cab	26	91	109		200	7.7		5. Ericka Morrison	CM	23	78	102	.764
6. Tricia Casarotto	Wes	28	83	130		213	7.6		6. Caitlin Sparks	Arc	9	28	37	.756
7. Robin Smith	Wes	28	97	109		206	7.4		7. Katelin Ryan	Cab	25	69	94	.734
8. Dominique Murray	Imm	26	81	106		187	7.2		8. Courtney Porzio	Ced	21	57	78	.730
9. Jenell Fort	CM	8	21	36		57	7.1		9. Alicia Woodruff	Mar	15	74	103	.718
10. Meg Legere	Imm	25	53	124		177	7.1		10. Dominique Murray	Imm	26	96	135	.711
11. Becky Soda	Arc	24	44	126		170	7.1
12. Ashley Bechtel	Ced	21	58	90		148	7.0		Assists		G		Asst	Avg
13. Amanda Holroyd	Arc	25	72	103		175	7.0		1. T'Neisha Turner	Wes	28		148	5.3
14. Ericka Morrison	CM	23	66	95		161	7.0		2. Karen Tierney	GMC	29		139	4.8
15. Mary Kate Pawlowski	Imm	20	57	68		125	6.3		3. Karen Specht	Imm	7		28	4.0
16. Ashley Vandiver	GMC	29	68	110		178	6.1		4. Kasey Hicks	Imm	26		100	3.8
17. Caitlin Sparks	Arc	9	17	38		55	6.1		5. Stephanie Bates	Arc	25		93	3.7
18. Nellie Mixon	Neu	27	67	94		161	6.0		6. Amy Hughes	CM	10		33	3.3
19. Samantha Hartling	Cab	26	44	111		155	6.0		7. Jackie Dougherty	GMC	29		93	3.2
20. T'Neisha Turner	Wes	28	23	141		164	5.9		8. Kerry Higgs	Alv	26		82	3.1
									9. Kim Hinkle	Neu	26		72	2.8
									10. Katelin Ryan	Cab	25		68	2.7
Blocks		G	Blks	Avg					Steals		G		Stls	Avg
1. Nadine McCarthy	Mar	21	41	2.0					1. Karen Specht	Imm	7		26	3.7
2. Jenell Fort	CM	8	15	1.9					2. Nellie Mixon	Neu	27		82	3.0
3. Ashley Bechtel	Ced	21	37	1.8					3. Alicia Woodruff	Mar	15		42	2.8
4. Tricia Casarotto	Wes	28	48	1.7					4. Cecelia Saunders	Ros	20		54	2.7
5. Samantha Hartling	Cab	26	36	1.4					5. Megan Yhlen	CM	25		63	2.5
6. Meg Legere	Imm	25	30	1.2					6. Jacey Bray	Eas	25		63	2.5
7. Jacey Bray	Eas	25	27	1.1					7. Stephanie Bates	Arc	25		58	2.3
8. Dominique Murray	Imm	26	28	1.1					8. Caity Hadzimichalis	Mar	25		55	2.2
9. Allee Barnes	Alv	25	25	1.0					9. Amanda Swartz	Ced	19		41	2.1
10. Robin Smith	Wes	28	26	0.9					10. Melissa Benedetti	Cab	10		21	2.1

Back to Top

2005-06 Women's Basketball Awards

First Team
Mandy Reinhart, Alvernia
Becky Soda, Arcadia
* Jackie Dougherty, Gwynedd-Mercy
Kirsten Patton, Neumann
* T’Neisha Turner, Wesley
* Tricia Casarotto, Wesley

* Repeat selection

Second Team
Ericka Morrison, Misericordia University
Jillian Chiarantona, Gwynedd-Mercy
Meg Legere, Immaculata
Mary Kate Pawlowski, Immaculata
Nellie Mixon, Neumann
Katie Linder, Rosemont

Honorable Mention
Lauren Fortna, Alvernia
Lauren Healy, Gwynedd-Mercy
Dominique Murray, Immaculata
Alicia Woodruff, Marywood

Player of the Year: T’Neisha Turner, Wesley
Rookie of the Year: Kristy Cramp, Gwynedd-Mercy
Coach of the Year: Patty Canterino, Immaculata

All-PAC Women’s Basksetball Sportsmanship Team
Mandy Reinhart, Alvernia; Katie Lynch, Arcadia; Jackie Yoder, Cabrini; Valerie Siegrist, Cedar Crest; Jacey Bray, Eastern; Allison Gray, Gwynedd-Mercy; Nina Cammarano, Immaculata; Liz McGill, Marywood; Kelly Ahart, Misericordia University; Kylynn McMichnol, Neumann; Maureen Deviney, Rosemont; Robin Smith, Wesley

Wesley College’s T’Neisha Turner (Sr, G, Upper Marlboro, MD/Frederick Douglass) was named the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week ending February 19. Turner averaged 32.5 points, 5.5 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game as the Wolverines notched a pair of wins. Turner has been the Conference Player of the Week for the final six weeks of the season.

Honor Roll
Ashley Vandiver, Gwynedd-Mercy (Jr, F, Philadelphia, PA/Archbishop Ryan) – Averaged 13.5 points, five rebounds and two steals in a 2-0 PAC week.
Dominique Murray, Immaculata (Fr, F, Wilmington, DE/Padua Academy) – Averaged 16.3 points, 9.3 rebounds and two steals in a 1-2 PAC week.
Ericka Morrison, Misericordia (So, F, Avon Lake, OH/Avon Lake) – Had 22 points and 10 rebounds in a 1-0 week.

February 13
Wesley College’s T’Neisha Turner (Sr, G, Upper Marlboro, MD/Frederick Douglass) was named the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week ending February 12. Turner averaged 21.3 points, eight rebounds and 5.7 assists as the Wolverines swept all three of their contests to clinch the second seed heading into the playoffs. This is the fifth straight week Turner has taken home the Conference Player of the Week award.

February 6
Wesley College’s T’Neisha Turner (Sr, G, Upper Marlboro, MD/Frederick Douglass) was named the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week ending February 5. Turner averaged 25 points, 7.7 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.3 steals per game as the team went 1-2 in the PAC during the week. Turner, who has now earned this honor four consecutive weeks, became Wesley women’s basketball’s all-time leading scorer in Saturday’s victory over Marywood University.

January 30
Wesley College’s T’Neisha Turner (Sr, G, Upper Marlboro, MD/Frederick Douglass) was named the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week ending January 29. Turner averaged 26.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 2.7 steals per game as the team went 3-0 during the week. This was the third straight week Turner received the honor.

January 23
Wesley College’s T’Neisha Turner (Sr, G, Upper Marlboro, MD/Frederick Douglass) was named the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week ending January 22. Turner averaged 21.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game as the team went 2-0 during the week. This was the second straight week Turner received the honor.

January 16
Wesley College’s T’Neisha Turner (Sr, G, Upper Marlboro, MD/Frederick Douglass) was named the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week ending January 15. Turner averaged 22.3 points, eight assists, 6.3 rebounds and 4.3 steals per game as the team went undefeated in their three games on the week.

January 9
Gwynedd-Mercy College’s Jackie Dougherty (Jr, F, Roslyn, PA/Abington) was named the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week ending January 8. Dougherty averaged 14.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game as the Griffins swept three games during the week. Dougherty was named the Most Valuable Player at the Days Inn Classic, where Gwynedd-Mercy defeated Gettysburg and Washington.

January 2
Gwynedd-Mercy College’s Jillian Chiarantona (Sr, G, Abington, PA/Gwynedd-Mercy) was named the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week ending January 1.  Chiarantona scored 16 points and had four rebounds, four assists and two steals in the Griffins 78-72 loss to McDaniel.

December 12
Gwynedd-Mercy College’s Jillian Chiarantona (Sr, G, Abington, PA/Gwynedd-Mercy) was named the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week ending December 11. Chiarantona averaged 16.5 points, seven rebounds and three assists per game as the Griffins defeated Misericordia and King’s on the week.

December 5
Rosemont College’s Katie Linder (Jr, F/C, Philadelphia, PA/St. Basil) was named the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week ending December 4. Linder averaged 17.7 points and 10.7 rebounds per game as the Ramblers defeated Lebanon Valley College and PAC opponents Marywood University and Eastern University.

November 28
Gwynedd-Mercy College’s Jackie Dougherty (Jr, F, Roslyn, PA/Abington) was named the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) Women’s Basketball Player of the Week for the week ending November 27. Dougherty averaged 15 points and seven rebounds per game in a 2-1 start for the Griffins. Dougherty helped her team to a third-place finish at the season-opening Marymount Tip-Off Tournament. In the season-opening win vs. Trinity (Tx.), she was one rebound shy of a double-double finishing with a game-high 18 points. She also added four assists, a block, and a steal. In the second game against the host Saints, she totaled 14 points, four boards, and three assists. In the 3rd-place game against Gettysburg, she recorded 11 points, eight rebounds, and six assists.

Back to Top

2005-06 Women's Basketball Championship Results

Date	PAC Women's Schedule/Results
February 21st	PAC Quarterfinals
Game 1	@ #4 Alvernia 55, #5 Cabrini 35
Game 2	#6 Neumann 60, @ #3 Immaculata 52
February 23rd	PAC Semifinal
Game 3	@ #1 Gwynedd-Mercy 67, #4 Alvernia 37
Game 4	@ #2 Wesley 92, #6 Neumann 66
February 25th	PAC Final
Game 5	#2 Wesley @ #1 Gwynedd-Mercy

Back to Top

2006 PAC Women's Basketball Championship

PAC Championship

Saturday, February 25

#1 Gwynedd-Mercy 71, #2 Wesley 60

GWYNEDD VALLEY, PA. - Gwynedd-Mercy defeated Wesley, 71-60, in the finals of the 2006 Pennsylvania Athletic Conference Tournament Saturday evening at the Griffin Complex. The Griffins win their fourth league crown and capture the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament. It also marks the squad's ninth-straight PAC Championship Game appearance.

The Griffins will take on Richard Stockton in a first-round game this Friday, March 3rd at 5 p.m. on the campus of the University of Scranton. The winner of that game would face the winner of the host Royals and Marymount on Saturday at 7 p.m. The Ospreys (22-5), out of the New Jersey Athletic Conference, fell in the NJAC Finals to the College of New Jersey, 60-39, and earned an at-large berth. Tickets are $6.00 for adults and $3.00 for senior citizens, students and children. All children under two will be admitted free accompanied by an adult. Tickets will go on sale in the lobby of the Long Center at the University on Thursday, March 2, and Friday, March 3, from 9:00 am until 4:00 pm. The Long Center will open its doors on Friday at 4:00 p.m.

Tournament MVP Ashley Vandiver (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Ryan) led all scorers and rebounders, netting 17 of her game-high 21 points in the second half and pulling in 11 caroms for GM. Senior Jillian Chiarantona (Abington, Pa./Gwynedd-Mercy Academy) added 16 points and junior Jackie Dougherty (Roslyn, Pa./Abington) chipped in 10. Both each had eight rebounds respectively. Robin Smith led the Wolverines (19-8), who were making their second title game appearance. Tricia Casarotto contributed 12 points, four assists, and a blocked shot.

The Griffins (24-3) got in a hole early as Wesley ran out to a 10-0 lead. Vandiver finally put Gwynedd on the board five minutes into the game. Her bucket ignited a 19-6 GMC run over the next 12 minutes to give GM its first lead of the game. Chiarantona hit two-free throws just before the half to put the Griffins up 25-19.

Wesley rallied to start the second half, tying the game on Casarotto's jumper from the corner which capped a 6-0 run. But Gwynedd pushed ahead for good on the next possession as Chiarantona drained one of her two treys with 17 minutes to play. GM would push the lead to double digits as Kristy Cramp (Pennington, N.J./Hopewell Valley) hit from downtown to lead 44-33 with 11 minutes to go.

Vandiver would help put the game away with just under seven minutes remaining as her three-point play from a tough putback inside and a foul gave GM a decisive 55-43 edge. Gwynedd hit 23-of-57 (40%) from the floor while Wesley was 25-of-63 (39%). GM outrebounded, the Wolverines, 44-35, and shut down the league's leading scorer, T'Neisha Turner to just seven points.

Back to Championship Stories

PAC Semifinal

Thursday, February 23

#2 Wesley 92, #6 Neumann 66

DOVER, De. - #2 Wesley College (19-7) defeated #6 Neumann College (12-14) by a final score of 92-66, in the semifinal round of the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) Women's Basketball Tournament on Thursday night. Wesley will be making its second trip into the conference finals, with the first appearance coming in 2000. The Wolverines will be taking on Gwynedd-Mercy College, who is making their 9th straight appearance into the PAC Final. The game will be played at Gwynedd-Mercy on Saturday, February 25th, starting at 7:00 PM.

On Thursday night, Wesley's T'Neisha Turner (SR, Upper Marlboro, MD/Frederick Douglass) scored 29 points and dished out eight assists to pace the Wolverine offense. Turner became the All-Time Scoring Leader at Wesley in men and women's basketball, surpassing Larry Bryant's mark of 1,791 points that he set in 2003. Tricia Casarotto (SR, Camden, DE/Caesar Rodney) and Robin Smith (SR, Washington, D.C./St. John's) scored 16 points apiece, while Smith grabbed a game-high 17 rebounds. Patricia Milner (SO, Camden, DE/Caesar Rodney) contributed 14 points and three steals.

Wesley jumped out to a quick 17-5 lead off a basket by Turner with 12:49 in the first half and pushed that lead to 25-9 with 7:27 remaining before halftime. Neumann committed 12 turnovers in the first half, which Wesley converted into 14 points in the half. The Wolverines held no less than a 13 point lead the rest of the half going into the break with a 40-23 advantage.

The second half saw Wesley jump out to a 53-27 lead for its largest lead of the game, but Neumann out-scored Wesley 17-9 over the next 6:02 to pull within 18 (62-44) points of the Wolverines. The Knights would get no closer the rest of the way, as Wesley put the game out of reach with a 10-2 run to go up 72-44 with 7:24 remaining. Wesley shot 20-of-33 (60.6%) from the field in the second half. For the game, Wesley shot 38-of-74 (51.4%) and out-rebounded the Knights 49-36, while forcing 19 Neumann turnovers. The Wolverines were able to convert on 17 second chance points.

Back to Championship Stories

 

#1 Gwynedd-Mercy 67, #4 Alvernia 37

GWYNEDD VALLEY, PA. - Junior Ashley Vandiver (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Ryan) and senior Jillian Chiarantona (Abington, Pa./Gwynedd-Mercy Academy) each scored 12 points to lead a balanced attack as top-seeded Gwynedd-Mercy rolled to a 67-37 win over fourth-seeded Alvernia in a semifinal game of the 2006 Pennsylvania Athletic Conference Tournament Thursday evening at the Griffin Complex. The Griffins advance to the PAC Championship game for the ninth-straight season on Saturday here at 7 p.m. against second-seeded Wesley, who knocked off Neumann, 92-66, in the other semifinal.

Vandiver added 10 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season while Chiarantona grabbed seven boards. Sophomore Karen Tierney (Philadelphia, Pa./Kennedy-Kenrick) chipped in 10 points and eight assists. Both teams got off to sluggish starts as the teams stayed within arms reach of each other. After Alee Barnes gave Alvernia an 8-7 lead midway through the stanza, Gwynedd exploded on a 20-4 run to close the half and lead 27-12 at the break. From there the Griffins' (23-3) lead increased to 24 as Kristy Cramp (Pennington, N.J./Hopewell Valley) hit one of her two treys on the night. The freshman finished with 10 points.

Alvernia (14-13) did not have a double-digit scorer as Kerry Higgs totaled nine points. Mandy Reinhart added seven while Lauren Fortna pulled down seven rebounds.

The Crusaders were just 14-of-53 (26%) shooting and committed 23 turnovers GM shot 43% (25-of-58) for the game including a 14-of-27 stint in the second half. The Griffins won the battle of the boards, 44-32. Sophomore Beccie Strohecker (Hatboro, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham) totaled seven boards, four points, three steals, and two assists.

Back to Championship Stories

 

PAC Quarterfinal

Tuesday, February 21

#6 Neumann 60, #3 Immaculata 52

Senior Nellie Mixon scored 23 points to lead Neumann College (12-14) to a 60-52 win over Immaculata University (17-9) in a Pennsylvania Athletic Conference (PAC) first-round game on Tuesday night. The sixth-seeded Knights will travel to Wesley College, seeded second, on Thursday night.

The Knights scored the game's final 11 points over the last three minutes to turn a three-point deficit into the win. Mary Kate Devine started the run with one of two free throws with 2:55 to play. Devine then tied the game 41 seconds later with a jumper from the foul line. Immaculata had an opportunity to re-take the lead, but Nina Cammarano's jumper rimmed out, and Mixon gave Neumann its first lead since the 11-minute mark with one of two free throws with 1:17 to play. Nixon missed the second, but eventually came away with the ensuing rebound and was fouled again. She hit one of two again to give Neumann a 54-52 lead with just over a minute to play.

Shareeta Brown extended the Knights' lead to four points with a jump shot with 46 seconds to go, and Immaculata could not get the ball to drop down the other end. The Knights put the game away at the free throw line, sinking four in the final 33 seconds.

Immaculata was led by freshman Dominique Murray, who scored 16 points and grabbed 13 rebounds before fouling out. Cammarano added 11 points, and junior Meg Legere scored nine points and grabbed eight rebounds. Brown hit four three-pointers on her way to 14 points for Neumann, and senior Kirsten Patton finished with nine points and 14 boards.

Back to Championship Stories

 

#4 Alvernia 55, #5 Cabrini 35

Reading, PA (Feb. 21, 2006) – Junior guard Lauren Fortna (Lebanon, PA/Lebanon Catholic) scored all of her game-high 17 points after halftime to lead fourth seeded Alvernia College to a 55-35 win over #5 Cabrini College Tuesday evening in the quarterfinals of the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference Women’s Basketball Championships at the Physical Education Center.

Alvernia (14-12) held the Cavaliers (11-15) to just 4-of-27 from the floor in the first half and 16 total points at the break. The visitors didn’t fare much better in the second half hitting 7-of-30 shots from the field after halftime. The Crusaders advance to the PAC semifinal Thursday at #1 Gwynedd-Mercy. Game time is 7:00 p.m. in Lower Gwynedd.

Freshman forward Allee Barnes (Blooming Glen, PA/Pennridge), who scored nine points off the bench and grabbed a team best six rebounds, knocked down a jumper with just under seven minutes left in the first half to give Alvernia a 13-12 lead and the Crusaders rattled off 13 of the next 15 points to take a 24-14 lead. Barnes hit two 3s and senior Mandy Reinhart (Pine Grove, PA/Pine Grove) hit another as the Crusaders were a perfect 3-for-3 from behind the arc in the first half. Cabrini freshman Kayleen Smith (Williamstown, NJ/St. Joseph’s) hit the Cavs fourth jumper of the half and Barnes’ free throw with 1:11 on the clock made the score 25-16, where it remained at the half.

The second half score teetered between five and eight until the visitors put together four straight to cut the gap to three points, 31-28 wit 9:46 to play. Fortna knocked down a pair from the line and capped a streak of eight straight with a 3 at 7:22 that put the hosts up 39-28. Cabrini cut the lead to eight at 6:14 on a Sharae Middlebrook (Philadelphia, PA/Central) jumper and nine points, 43-34, at 3:34 on a Nikki Duggan (Allentown, PA/Emmaus) 3, but Alvernia finished with 12 of the final 13 for the 55-35 final.

Alvernia sophomore Ashley Blevins (York, PA/Central York) was a perfect 4-for-4 from the floor and 5-for-5 from the free throw line to finish with a career-high 13. Ryan was the only Cavalier to reach double digits with 11 points on 4-of-9 shooting. Middlebrook finished with eight points and a game-high seven rebounds. Alvernia will face Gwynedd-Mercy for the third straight year in the PAC Championships. Each of the last two meetings were Alvernia wins in the PAC Final. GMC swept both games this season en route to a 16-0 record in conference.

Back to Championship Stories

NCAA First Round

Friday, March 3

Gwynedd-Mercy 72, Richard Stockton 68

SCRANTON, PA - Gwynedd-Mercy held off Richard Stockton, 72-68, in a 2006 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament First-Round Game Friday evening on the campus of the University of Scranton. With the win, the Griffins move on to the second round where they will play the host Lady Royals, tomorrow at 7 p.m.

Freshman Kristy Cramp (Pennington, N.J./Hopewell Valley) led all scorers with 16 points. Junior Jackie Dougherty (Roslyn, Pa./Abington) added 11 points, a game-high nine boards, and added six assists. Gwynedd-Mercy (25-3) dominantly led 43-20 at the half before a 19-0 Osprey second-half run midway through the second period closed the gap to just 50-47 with 10 minutes to play.

But the Griffins held strong, as sophomore Karen Tierney (Philadelphia, Pa./Kennedy-Kenrick) would feed Ashley Vandiver (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Ryan) for an open layup and then hit two free throws to give the Griffins a 70-62 edge with 35 seconds remaining. But Stockton rallied one more time as back-to-back three-pointers made it a two-point game at 70-68 with just 10 ticks left. Tierney then iced the game hitting two more from the line to account for the final margin.

In the first half, both teams shook off early jitters and missed shots as the score was just 5-5 seven minutes into the game. But the Griffins got hot as Cramp's second trey of the game helped ignite a 17-7 run. GM hit seven first-half trifectas and pushed their lead to 34-14 with 2:39 left in the half on a longball from Tierney.

Gwynedd hit an amazing 16-of-23 (69%) from the floor. Jessica Rainey netted 14 points for Richard Stockton (22-6), out of the New Jersey Athletic Conference who made their fourth NCAA Tournament appearance. Teammates Jenna Shenk and Danielle Walder each added 12 respectively. The Ospreys shot 27-of-64 (42%) for the game and were good on eight three-pointers. Cramp sank four of the team's nine treys while Jillian Chiarantona (Abington, Pa./Gwynedd-Mercy Academy) drained two as the senior registered 12 points. For the game, GM hit 26-of-51 (51%) of its shots and outrebounded RC, 34-31.

Back to Championship Stories

NCAA Second Round

Saturday, March 4

Scranton 80, Gwynedd-Mercy 72

SCRANTON, PA - Down by as many as 21 points midway in the second half, Gwynedd-Mercy rallied but came up short in a 80-72 loss to the University of Scranton in a 2006 NCAA Tournament Second-Round Game Saturday evening.

GM trailed 65-44 with 9:16 remaining but stormed back and cut the deficit to just three at 75-72 as junior Michelle Sgrillo (Philadelphia, Pa./Cardinal Dougherty) hit a three-pointer with 44 ticks left. But the Royals' Allison Matt would hit five of six from the line to hold off the upset-minded Griffins.

The loss ends Gwynedd-Mercy's season at 25-4. The second-ranked (d3hoops.com) Royals go to 28-1 and advance to next weekend's Sweet 16.

Junior Ashley Vandiver (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Ryan) led Gwynedd with 17 points while sophomore Karen Tierney (Philadelphia, Pa./Kennedy-Kenrick) added 13.

Matt scored 12 of her game-high 19 points in the second half for Scranton. Tiffaney Williams tabbed a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds as the Royals improved to 3-0 vs. the Griffins in NCAA Tournament games.

The Griffins had trouble on offense early, as the squad did not get on the board until Vandiver's three-point play made it an 8-3 game 6:06 into the contest. Gwynedd erased a 21-14 hole with a 14-6 run and took a one-point lead on a trey from freshman Kristy Cramp (Pennington, N.J./Hopewell Valley) with 2:41 left in the half. Scranton answered by closing the period on an 11-0 run capped by Julie Brophy's layup at the buzzer to give the Royals a 38-28 lead at the break.

Scranton held a double-digit lead throughout the second half before a 19-6 run over a five-minute span by the Griffins made things interesting.

For the game, GM hit 22-of-58 (37%) from the floor while UofS hit 28-of-59 (47%). Gwynedd hit eight treys on the night but committed 20 turnovers and was outrebounded, 38-32. Cramp finished with 12 points as well as senior Jillian Chiarantona (Abington, Pa./Gwynedd-Mercy Academy).

ECAC Quarterfinal

Wednesday, March 1

#2 Pitt-Greensburg 81, #7 Wesley 64

GREENSBURG, Pa. - Wesley College (19-9) fell to Pitt-Greensburg (22-6) in women's basketball action, by a final score of 81-64 in the first-round of the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Southern Region Tournament. Pitt-Greensburg got out of the gates quickly, out-scoring Wesley 10-4 in the first four minutes, and never looked back as they led the entire way.

The #2 seeded Bobcats were hot from start to finish, and posted a field-goal percentage of 51.6% for the game. The Wolverines shot an impressive 41% (26-of-63) for the game, but were just 15% (2-of-13) from behind the arc, and were out rebounded by the Bobcats 39-33 for the contest. The Wolverines were led by guard T'Neisha Turner (SR, Upper Marlboro, MD/Frederick Douglass) who netted a game-high 22 points and made four steals. Tricia Casarotto (SR, Camden, DE/Caesar Rodney) added 12 points and three blocked shots for Wesley.

Back to Championship Stories

Back to Top