Box Score Abington, Pa. – The Penn State Abington women's basketball squad held a late lead over their interstate rivals Penn State Berks, but the hosts couldn't hold off a late charge and fell in the final seconds by a score of 67-69. Senior Janay Winston led all scorers with 19 points and three assists, while juniors Jessica Schmidt and Stephanie Keyes each tallied 13 more points on the night. For Berks, it was sophomore guard Shanelle Koch who did most of the work, leading the way with 18 points on the night, including 13 in the second half. Sophomore Cassidy Schultz added another 15 for the visitors, who earned their ninth-straight victory over Penn State Abington dating back to 2009.

After an opening seven minutes where each side seesawed into and out of the lead, Penn State Abington (4-11, 2-7 NEAC) finally took control of the game in the middle stages of the first half. After a Berks layup tied the game at seven at the 13:22 mark, Penn State Abington went on a 15-9 run over the next seven minutes to take a 22-16 lead. Keyes got the run started by draining one of her three triples on the night. Then, freshman Breanna Lineman worked her way into the paint for a solid layup to give the Nittany Lions a five-point lead. After Berks chipped the margin back down to two, sophomore Teharah Worrell used a nifty move to shake her defender and slide into the paint for another layup. Keyes bookended the run by sinking a pair of free throws to give the hosts their six-point lead. Over the remainder of the half, Berks managed to knock that lead back down ever so slightly, and a buzzer-beating three pointer from Schultz at the horn made it just a 31-29 game in favor of Penn State Abington.
 
When the teams came back out for the second half, it was Penn State Abington who attacked the basket with renewed vigor. Just three minutes into the new frame, Abington had built their lead back up to six thanks to a solid and-1 layup from Schmidt to make it a 42-36 game. That lead remained about the same over the next five minutes, until the hosts put together another great run that seemingly knocked Berks out of the contest. With 12:14 left to play, Winston got an open jumper to go, kicking off what would be an 11-2 run over the next three minutes. Winston put the team on her back for a majority of that run, scoring two foul shots on the next possession, before following that up with two more jumpers. Keyes found herself wide open on the wing and buried another three-ball to cap the run off and give Penn State Abington a 61-48 lead with just 8:56 left to play. However, Berks somehow picked themselves up off the mat and put together a 20-4 run of their own over the next 6:53 to tie, and then take the lead over Abington. The visitors scored six straight points to cut into their deficit before Worrell halted that mini-run with another jumper. Then, Berks nailed a pair of three-pointers around another Abington jumper and finally tied the game back up by working the ball inside off Abington turnovers. When Khadijah Robinson converted a plus-1 layup of her own, the game was suddenly tied back up at 65-65. Berks took the lead for themselves on the next possession with a free throw, then capped off the run with a jumper from Koch to make it 68-65 in favor of the visitors. Penn State Abington made a valiant effort to close the gap again, and a Worrell jumper made it just a one-point game with exactly a minute left. However, on their next possession, the hosts were unable to convert on a pair of free throws, and Berks made one of theirs to give them a two-point lead with just five seconds left to play. Abington got a deep three pointer off at the buzzer that would've counted, but the ball clanged painfully off the iron, and Abington had to swallow a difficult 67-69 defeat.
 
With the loss, the Nittany Lions slip to 4-11 overall and 2-7 in the NEAC. They'll get a quick chance to come back out and turn things around when they hit the road this Saturday for a matchup at Keuka College. The Storm currently sit in a tie for first place in the NEAC North Division with a 7-2 conference record. Game time is set for 3:00 p.m. on Saturday in Keuka Park, New York. Be sure to keep following abingtonsports.com for all your news and notes on Penn State Abington athletics!