Rock women’s basketball lost their final regular season game of the year Saturday when their fourth quarter comeback fell short to Gannon University (16-12) losing the game 60-50.
Ending the season, The Rock finished with an overall record of 12-15 and a 10-12 conference record which places them in the sixth and final playoff spot in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West. This will set up a match-up with with a ranked opponent in No. 24 California University of Pa (23-5) in the first round.
A slow paced first quarter did leave The Rock on top of Gannon early 14-9, and even when things picked up in the second, the Green and White still found themselves ahead of the Golden Knights 30-26 heading into halftime.
In the third quarter, The Rock simply was not on top of their game as Gannon controlled the quarter outscoring The Rock 21-4 in the ten minute span. Despite a treacherous third quarter, The Rock proceeded to to dig themselves out of 13 point hole they created by going on a 12-2 run to start the fourth to cut Gannon’s lead to three points with four minutes to play.
However The Rock’s comeback then fell short as they could only make two of their final six shots of the game, while Gannon went five of six in free throws and three of four from the field in the final stages of the game to secure the win 60-50.
Junior forward Morgan Henderson recorded a double-double in the contest with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Despite losing the game, The Rock held Gannon, on of the top three point shooting teams in the PSAC to just four of 19 from beyond the arch and just a 33.3 field goal percentage.
The PSAC tournament will kick-off for The Rock on Monday when the travel to CalU to take on the number 24 ranked team in the nation in the recent Women’s Basketball Coaches Association top-25 poll. This will be The Rock’s second playoff appearance in the past four years under head coach Bobby McGraw.
