The Shippensburg University women’s basketball team won a key Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) matchup Saturday afternoon at Mansfield University by a 75–65 score. SU was led in the victory by sophomore Kryshell Gordy who posted a career-high 21-point and 17 rebound double-double.
The Raiders (12-14, 8-10 PSAC) avoided a three-game losing streak by crushing MU inside with a 51-27 rebounding advantage and 16 second-chance points. They also scored 32 points off Mansfield turnovers.
Shippensburg also got contributions from freshman Lauren Mills, who posted a career-high 18 points and four rebounds on 70 percent shooting. Leading scorer sophomore Ariel Jones tallied 16 points, eight rebounds and five assists in her return from injury.
Off the bench, freshman Margarita Kilpatrick, redshirt-sophomore Lindsay Embly and freshman Dah’Naija Barnes combined for 11 points and six rebounds.
Freshman Lauren Pettis fought through foul trouble to post seven points and six rebounds along with a steal. SU was playing without standout freshman Aunbrielle Green due to injury.
The Mounties (2-22, 1-18 PSAC) were led in scoring by Paige Whitfield, who put up 20 points on 50 percent shooting. Erin Gibbons also put points on the board for MU, tallying 18. Its team collectively made 11 three-pointers.
Kryshell Gordy barrels past a defender on her way to scoring two of her 21 points against the Mounties Saturday.
Gordy scored 13 of her 21 points in the first half of the contest, and also acquired four steals, three blocks and two assists while going a career-high 7-8 from the free-throw line.
Jones broke the PSAC single season record for free-throw attempts in the game as she saw her total attempts climb to 277. She passed the previous record of 272 set by SU’s Melissa Swartz in the 1995-96 season. Jones is now just four converted free throws shy of the single-season record of 223 free throws set by Miki Glenn in 2014-2015.
With only two games remaining in the regular season, the PSAC East playoff race is going to go down to the wire as Shippensburg is now tied for sixth with East Stroudsburg University. However, the Warriors hold a tiebreaker over the Raiders due to ESU having a victory against first-place Bloomsburg University. Lock Haven and Millersville universities are only one-half game ahead of ESU and SU.
The Raiders will return to the court Wednesday from Heiges Field House against the West Chester University Golden Rams — tip-off is at 6 p.m.
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