Huntingdon, Pa. - Susquehanna maintained a steady lead over the Eagles in the second half to defeat JC 72-56 in Memorial Gym on Wednesday, Feb. 1. The River Hawks now move to 4-5 in the conference, while the Eagles fall to 1-8.
STARTING FIVE:
5 Bethany Spencer (York, Pa./York Suburban)
21 Katy Leamer (Altoona, Pa./Bellwood-Antis)
30 Dani Atkinson (Lancaster, Pa./Lancaster Catholic)
42 Kelly Leamer (Altoona, Pa./Bellwood)
44 Rachael Anstine (York, Pa./Dallastown)
With a successful drive to the basket off the tip, Anstine put the Eagles on the board with a layup. Juniata earned three stops to keep the River Hawks scoreless through the first two minutes. Due to four missed shots on the Eagles' basket, they were unable to add on until Spencer sunk a three to take a 5-0 lead.
Susquehanna then went on an undisputed run to gain a 13-5 lead.
Bri Wasser (Ebensburg, Pa./Central Cambria) broke the scoreless streak with a drive to the basket. Morgan Instone (Johnstown, Pa./Bishop McCort) followed Wasser's lead and made a layup of her own after Suzy Badorf-England (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Mechanicsburg) forced a turnover under the Susquehanna basket.
The River Hawks led 18-9 at the end of the first quarter.
Susquehanna held a 22-9 lead in the second until Instone capitalized on a three-point play. After a River Hawk three from the corner, Veronica Cosmopolis (Lima, Peru/Colegio Carmelitas) forced a turnover and passed to Wasser under the basket for a jumper. The junior made another jump shot on the next JC possession and Eagles were within ten.
Susquehanna took a 35-26 into the second half.
Katy Leamer and Anstine each shot 2-for-2 to retaliate the River Hawks' attempts to extend their lead.
However, Susquehanna was able to tally seven points and take a 48-34 lead over the Eagles halfway through the third quarter.
Atkinson, Myers, Wasser and Kaeana Rebert (Hanover, Pa./South Western) each tallied two points to keep up with Susquehanna's consistent offense. With Wasser's layup, she totaled five buckets from the field, marking double-digits for the second consecutive game.
JC trailed 55-42 at the end of the third quarter.
Juniata's 14-point final quarter was not enough to overcome Susquehanna's growing lead. Atkinson, Anstine and Katy Leamer accounted for the Eagles' 14 points.