MANSFIELD – Mansfield University's women's basketball team hosted East Stroudsburg for the final game of 2018, as the Warriors were able to navigate a deficit and come away with a 68-44 road win over the Mountaineers at First Citizens Community Bank Court at Decker Gymnasium.
 
The Mountaineers (0-9, 0-5 PSAC) seemed very fluid out of the gates, with tremendous ball movement aiding their 10-3 advantage through the first media timeout. Entering that timeout, it was sophomore guard Erin Gibbons who had the hot hand, scoring six points by means of a three-pointer and a successfully converted and-one opportunity. East Stroudsburg (6-6, 3-3 PSAC) shot just 30 percent from the field in the opening half of action.
 
The first ten minutes of play saw Mansfield outscore East Stroudsburg 14-11.  Gibbons chipped in another two points, and was additionally supplemented by stellar play from Mia Leonard. The forward added six points, two assists, and three rebounds for the Mounties in the first quarter.  Noelle Cameron came up with a huge rejection at the rim, denying Tiffany Lapotsky of a layup. The ensuing score by Ellie Thompson put Mansfield up 22-19.

Heading into halftime, the two squads found themselves all tied up at 24-24.
 
Paige Whitfield hit a three-pointer in the corner at the start of the second half to aid the Mountie offensive. Mansfield built a 33-26 lead in the third quarter before Marlene Bassett ended the run and cut the deficit to five for the Warriors. Bassett scored 14 of her game-high 19 points in the second half; she also added five rebounds, four steals, and a block.
 
With just over three minutes of play remaining in the third quarter, East Stroudsburg saw their first lead of the game. Mansfield had led by as many as nine up to that point, however the Warriors seemed to turn it up a notch. That momentum then carried into the final ten minutes of play, which saw East Stroudsburg outscore the Mounties 25-6.
 
The first half had seen Mansfield out-rebounding ESU 25-19; They also held the Warriors to shoot just 30% from the field.  The tides turned after the intermission as the Mounties allowed 44 second half points and saw the Warriors field goal percentage rise to 58%, while also losing the battle of the boards 24-17. In addition to Bassett's 19 point performance, Tiffany Lapotsky scored 11 points and recorded six steals to go with seven rebounds in the game for ESU. Kaitlyn Swint and Maggie Wigoda both tallied eight points.

As for Mansfield, Thompson and Gibbons both scored ten points on the day, which accounted for 45% of the team's total offense. Leonard was held to just one point after missing five free throws in the second half. She grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds and blocked two shots in the loss. Freshman Sydney Reed made the most of her time on the court, scoring six points from beyond the arc. McKenzie Hatch scored four points to go along with three assists and two rebounds.
 
After the New Year, Mansfield will hit the road again on January 5th for a PSAC contest at Lock Haven, and return home to host West Chester on January 9th.