Last second effort comes up short vs. Greater Allegheny

Hazleton, Pa. - Penn State Hazleton dropped their second conference game of the season Friday night at the Dr. Thomas M. Caccese Gymnasium, falling to Penn State Greater Allegheny in the final seconds of regulation. Hazleton came back from a six point deficit midway through the fourth and took a one point lead with less than a minute to play, but a jumper by Allegheny's Jayla Ellis with less than 10 seconds remaining gave the visitors a 69-68 win over the Lady Lions.

Sophomore Kendra Pfeil (Hazleton, Pa.) paced all scorers in the game, notching her first double-double of the 2018-19 season with 24 points and 10 rebounds. Pfeil kept the Lady Lions in contention with a 12 point effort in the third period and for the game, sank 7-of-17 from the field and went 9-for-10 from the charity stripe to lead the squad in scoring.

Senior Mckenzie Prutsman (Jasper, Ny.) added 14 points and nine rebound while sophomore Lauren Pataki (Hazleton, Pa.) chipped in 10 points and a team high five assists. Sophomore Devon Keiper (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.) notched a season high eight points while pulling in 10 rebounds to cap the Lady Lions top efforts on the night.

The Lady Lions were excelled at the free throw line Friday night, earning 32 attempts from the stripe and converting free throws at a 75 percent clip. In the end however it would be Greater Allegheny's prowess on the glass that would seal up the victory. The visitors earned 16 second chance points on the night, a result of 20 offensive rebounds allowed by Hazleton. 

Trailing by six points with five minutes to play, Hazleton got key baskets from Prutsman, Pataki junior Mekenzie Wolfe (Grove City, Pa.) who sank a go-ahead bucket, giving Hazleton a 67-65 lead over Allegheny with 1:49 remaining. Alleheny would even the score at 67 but a free throw from Pfeil with less than one minute remaining had the Lady Lions back on top. Both squads would force turnovers in the final minute but it would be Allegheny finding themselves with possession with just 17 seconds to play. Hazleton forced a missed shot, but a crucial rebound on the offensive glass by Alex Hall led to the Ellis jumper from the baseline that put Allegheny on top for good. 

Next up: The Lady Lions continue Penn State University Athletic Conference play on Saturday, December 1 with a visit from Penn State DuBois at 1:00 p.m.