SCRANTON, Pa. – The No. 7/8 University of Scranton women's basketball team (20-2, 11-2 Landmark) held Moravian to just 28.9% shooting from the floor and notched a 65-47 victory over the Greyhounds (7-15, 6-9 Landmark) on Wednesday evening at the John Long Center in Scranton.
Scranton led 5-4 just over four minutes into the game when sophomore Kaci Kranson (Scranton, Pa./Holy Cross) hit a layup which ignited a 13-2 run capped off by four consecutive free throws by graduate student Hannah Angelini (Baldwin Place, N.Y./Somers) to make it an 18-7 game after one. In the second quarter, Moravian cut the lead to eight before seniors Allie Lynch (Villanova, Pa./Academy of Notre Dame de Namur) and Maddie Hartnett (Chatham, N.J./Chatham) sank jumpers on consecutive possessions to stretch the lead back to double digits at 26-14 with 4:12 to play. The Lady Royals later scored the final nine points of the half and Hartnett's three in the waning seconds gave the hosts a 35-19 lead at the break.
Head coach Ben O'Brien's team held a 42-32 advantage at the 3:50 mark of the third quarter when Kranson converted a three-point play and freshman Meghan Lamanna (New Providence, N.J./New Providence) followed with one of her own as the Lady Royals held a 51-38 advantage headed to the fourth. Freshman Katie Gorski (Pine Brook, N.J./Montville Township) scored eight of her 10 points in the fourth period and Moravian was unable to get any closer than 13 as Scranton preserved a seventh straight victory.
Kranson led all scorers with 20 points on 8-of-15 shooting and Gorski added 10, while Hartnett contributed nine points. Gorski was 4-of-6 from the floor and has reached double figures in two of her last three games.
Lizzie Lustig paced the Greyhounds with 11 points.
The Lady Royals shot 40.0% (24-of-60) from the floor, 18.2% (4-of-22) from long range and 72.2% (13-of-18) from the charity stripe and held Moravian to the 28.9% (13-of-45) from the field and 41.7% (5-of-12) from deep.
Angelini corralled a season-high nine rebounds and Kranson added nine of her own as Scranton held a 47-25 advantage on the glass.
Scranton will hit the road to battle Susquehanna in a Landmark Conference clash on Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. in Selinsgrove.
--LADY ROYALS--
