By HUNTER O. LYLE
BRADFORD, PA – Constantly battling attrition and lack of depth, the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford womens’ basketball team suffered their seventh consecutive loss, falling to Penn St.-Altoona 77-54.
Sitting at a little over halfway through the season, the Lady Panthers have had a rough go of it. Starting the year off with four straight losses, Pitt-Bradford has spiraled to 2-11 overall and 1-6 in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference. Between poor shooting and scoring to a lack of presence on the boards, the root of the problem lies on their bench.
“We just need more bodies. I think we’re more competitive when we have more bodies,” said first-year Pitt-Bradford head coach Melloni Benson. “We just get tired quickly. In the past few games for example, we only had six players (due to injury and sickness.) Most players have the opportunity to call for a sub and we’re just not there yet.”
Using a run-and-gun fast pace, Penn St.-Altoona would test the Lady Panthers early.
Pitt-Bradford started the game with a flash. On the initial possession of the night, Avery Ackerman ripped away a pass before converting it on the other end for the first points of the night. Unbeknownst to the Lady Panthers, that would be their only lead of the night. Immediately after, the Lady Lions knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers before tacking two more points on the board with a successful trip to the free throw line.
Constantly moving the ball with a combination of skip passes and drive-and-dishes, PS Altoona meticulously scattered the Lady Panthers defense before finding open looks both inside and out. On defense, the Lady Lions tipped passes and stripped ball handlers for successive steals, building a double-digit lead just under five minutes into the game.
Forced to fight an uphill battle early, Pitt-Bradford scrambled to get shots up. However, their rushed play turned against them, causing turnovers, missed opportunities and tired legs. As the first quarter ended, the Lady Panthers found themselves down 22-13.
The Lady Lions would keep their foot on the gas heading into the second quarter of play. Smelling blood in the water, PS Altoona opened with a 13-2 run in the first two minutes, burying Pitt-Bradford in a wave of offense.
Already feeling the attrition, Pitt-Bradford’s offense began to settle for one-and-done possessions. Choosing to go with their first-look opportunity yet unable to rip down offensive rebounds, the Lady Panthers were forced to back onto defense without time to catch their breath.
As the Lady Lions continued to build their lead with crisp ball and player movement, Pitt-Bradford became stagnant, which produced late shots and handfuls of turnovers. After scoring just five points in the second quarter, Pitt-Bradford faced a 21-deficit going into the break.
Avery Benzel (2) gets a screen from Paige Gratto during the Lady Panthers’ loss on Wednesday. Benzel finished with 12 points, seven rebounds and three steals. | Photo by Hunter O. Lyle
“(Being stagnant) is our nemesis. I have to be more strategic about when we call timeouts so I can give them the rest that they need,” said Benson. “One of the big things we talk about is continuing to move. Move the ball, move your body, cut, but we get winded and just kind of stand around.”
Instead of continuing to beat the Lady Panthers with shooting and ball movement, PS Altoona switched to battling on the boards for the second half. Starting on their first possession of the third quarter, in which the Lady Lions ripped down three consecutive offensive rebounds yet failed to score, PS Altoona fought inside for box outs and second chance opportunities – six of their first nine points came on second attempts.
However, mid-way through the period, the Lady Panthers would find their best run of the game. After forcing a miss, Raquel Sewell would earn two points at the line. Then, after a PS Altoona turnover, Paige Gratto would go to work. Scoring inside, outside and at the charity stripe, Grotto would catch fire as she scored nine consecutive Pitt-Bradford points, cutting the lead to under 20.
As they just began to gather momentum, the Lady Lions pounced, nailing a shot from beyond the arc that seemed to deflate Pitt-Bradford.
“I think the biggest thing is our numbers. We get a little fatigued and we don’t jump to the ball,” said Benson. “We tried to change it up and throw different defenses in there to mix it up. But we get tired and winded and it’s hard to keep up.”
With that, their run ended and in the final few minutes, the Lady Panthers would be outscored 10-5, stretching the lead to 31 before the final period
Throughout the fourth quarter, both teams simply ran through the motions. With the game all but decided, the deficit was insurmountable once again. Walking off the court, Pitt-Bradford tallied their 13th loss of the season.
Gratto finished with a game-high 19 points alongside 10 rebounds and two steals while Avery Benzel ended with 12 points, seven boards and three steals.
“I’m optimistic about what the second half of conference play is going to look like,” said Benson. “We got a pretty good look at everybody we’re up against so I think it’s just about going back to the drawing board and continuing our growth.”
