MANSFIELD – The Mansfield University women's basketball team ended the 2018-19 season on a high note with a 75-56 win over non-conference foe Cheyney.
The Mounties (3-23, 1-19 PSAC) led from start to finish in what started with a 4-0 run to open the game for Mansfield.
Erin Gibbons and
Ellie Thompson scored back-to-back buckets to force an early Cheyney (3-12) timeout. Gibbons would catch fire following the timeout scoring the next five Mansfield points in route to a team-high 17 first-half points.
Cheyney responded pulling the game back to a tie at 9-9 after a Gianni Hill deep 3-pointer. Mansfield bounced back from the tie going on to outscore the Wolves 29-12 before the break.
Mia Leonard added 10 first-half points to go along with six rebounds.
It was more of the same for Mansfield in the second half, showing great team chemistry on both ends of the floor with crisp passes on offense and sound communication on defense. Mansfield used a full court press to near perfection, forcing 22 Cheyney turnovers on the afternoon.
Erin Gibbons continued to add to what would be a career-high 26 points without playing in the 4
th quarter. She would finish going 10 of 17 from the field (59%) and hitting five of 10 (50%) from beyond the arc. Gibbons filled out the stat sheet by adding four steals, four assists, three rebounds, and a block.
Mia Leonard had a solid end to her season that saw her break the Mansfield single-season blocks record, adding four more blocks on the day. Leonard added 16 points and 11 rebounds along with tying a career-high with three assists. It was the third double-double effort of the season for Leonard and the ninth game this season in which she has compiled double-digit rebounding totals.
Ellie Thompson caught fire in the second half, scoring 10 of her 14 points while adding five of her eight rebounds.
Mansfield shot 39% from the field while Cheyney finished the afternoon at 32%. The Wolves were led in scoring by Marlon Herring, who finished with a double-double at 19 points and 11 rebounds. She was followed by Gianni Hill who compiled 17 points and seven rebounds.
