Panthers struggle to find range, fall to Wildcats

Williamsport, PA — The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford women’s basketball team traveled to Williamsport on Saturday, as they took on the Penn College Wildcats in a non-conference matchup. The Panthers shot just 29.3% from the field, including 16 percent from three, losing the contest 71-47.

The Panthers started strong, answering five early Wildcat points with a three by Yasmine Abu-Aiadeh and a layup from Raquel Sewell. They took a short-lived lead after an Avery Benzel free throw but quickly fell back behind with a three on the next possession. After falling behind 12-7, the Panthers scored five quick points on another Abu-Aiadeh three and a layup from Paige Gratto. They could not maintain the momentum, however, and were outscored 9-2 over the final five minutes of the quarter. Raquel Sewell made another field goal to close the quarter, but the Panthers trailed 21-14 after one.

Pitt-Bradford started the second quarter strong, making layups on their first three possessions of the period. Gratto made the first and then after a Penn three, Benzel and Sewell added two more. The Panthers went cold after the third layup, going on a three-minute drought that saw the hosts extend their lead back to 8. Gratto made a layup and Alexa Ackerman hit a three late in the quarter, however, the Panthers trailed 36-25 at the half.

Benzel started the second half with a free throw and Amber Murak made a jumper to cut the deficit to single digits, but the hosts took over, scoring the next 10 points to regain control. Gratto ended the dry spell with a layup at 5:17, however it was quickly matched. Gratto and Benzel each made a set of free throws and Ackerman converted a layup in the final seconds to send the game to the final quarter with Pitt-Bradford trailing 56-36.

The hosts started the final period with two straight jumpers before Murak was able to get the Panthers back on the board with a jumper of her own. Abu-Aiadeh added another three with 6:45 to go and a minute later Gratto and Murak made field goals to trim the lead to 17. Over the final five minutes of the game, the Panthers were limited to just two Abu-Aiadeh free throws leading to the 24-point final deficit.

Paige Gratto led the Panthers with 12 points in the loss. She also grabbed nine rebounds and tallied two assists and a steal. Yasmine Abu-Aiadeh also reached double figures, finishing with 11 points. 

The Panthers fall to 0-3 on the season. They will return to action next Friday when they hit the road to take on Houghton. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m. 

For more coverage visit: https://athletics.pittbradford.org/sports/wbkb/2024-25/releases/20241116wuczhc