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women's basketball playoff berth rection at cheyney
63
Winner Mansfield MANS-W 8-20, 6-16 psace
55
Cheyney CHEY-W 6-22, 4-18 PSAC
Winner
Mansfield MANS-W
8-20, 6-16 psace
63
Final
55
Cheyney CHEY-W
6-22, 4-18 PSAC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Mansfield MANS-W 19 11 12 21 63
Cheyney CHEY-W 8 11 11 25 55

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

Women’s Basketball Clinches First PSAC Playoff Berth in 11 Years in Win at Cheyney

CHEYNEY, Pa. – In an unrelenting team effort, the Mansfield University women's basketball defeated Cheyney 63-55 to earn its first playoff berth since the 2006-07 season.
 
"It was an overall great team effort, and everyone contributed in a positive way", explained head coach Mike Whitling. "The girls stayed composed in a high-intensity situation and showed great resiliency not only throughout the game but over the course of this season.
 
"I am very happy for the seniors and the rest of the team on this enormous accomplishment. They put in a lot of time and hard work and they deserve an opportunity to compete in playoffs."
 
Neither team saw much fall in the opening five minutes as Mansfield (8-20, 6-16 PSAC) led 7-6 at the first time-out. The Mountaineers went on a shooting run, draining three shots from the outside to lead 19-8 at the end of the first quarter.
 
Cheyney (6-22, 4-18 PSAC) would remain scoreless as the Mounties worked their way to 25 points to lead by 17. Mansfield was a force to be reckoned with down low, outrebounding their opponents 29-17 and scoring nine second-chance points in the first half.
 
The Wolves picked up their intensity to begin the second half, coming within seven points of the Mounties. Despite their opponent's newfound strength, Mansfield continued to attack holding a 42-30 advantage entering the last frame.
 
Fouls flew to start the final frame as both teams totaled five fouls in the first few minutes. Cheyney slowly built up momentum to close in on the Mountaineers 47-44 with five minutes to go. In a wire-to-wire showdown, Erin Gibbon's strong drive put Mansfield in front 58-53 with 2:35 left in the game.  
 
Both teams took trips to the charity stripe, but a Paige Whitfield trifecta set MU up 61-55 in the final minute. Gibbons secured the 63-55 victory as the women's basketball team earned its third playoff berth in program history under Whitling.
 
Mary Kate Rumbaugh went 5-7 from the floor and 3-4 from the line on her way to a team-high 14 points. Freshmen Mia Leonard dropped a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Gibbons, who was clutch from the free-throw line, hit 5-of-6 from the line and poured in two treys for 13 points. Melanie Taylor added 9 points while Whitfield chipped in seven of her own. Alyssa Mullins and Alayna Beisecker combined for seven points and each grabbed six boards.
 
Brianna Hedgepeth led the Wolves with game-highs in scoring (20) and rebounding (14) with Takayla Ellis adding 13 points.
 
The Mountaineers will travel to Millersville on Monday for the first round of PSAC playoffs. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.
 
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