Greater Allegheny Women's Hoops Split at Southern State Tip-Off Tournament

Hillsboro, Ohio - The Penn State Greater Allegheny women's basketball team went on the road to appear in the Southern State Tip-Off Tournament, Friday and Saturday, where GA overtook Southern State 82-72 but dropped to Cincinnati-Christian 75-50.

In the game Friday night against Southern State, freshman guard Tori Johnston (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin) opened the game with a ringer of a three-pointer to put Greater Allegheny first on the board. Senior power forward Christina Floyd (Philadelphia, Pa./Sts. Neumann-Goretti) bucketed a jumpshot before T. Johnston completed a free-throw to bring GA to a 6-2 lead just two minutes into the game.

Freshman guard Mandi Johnston (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin) slashed a free-throw before freshman forward Kelly Moore (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen) landed a jumper. Sophomore guard Tra-Esha Carswell (Homestead, Pa./Steel Valley) notched a jumper before advancing two free-throws, putting GA ahead 15-13. 

A quiet few minutes for Greater Allegheny saw a Southern State lead before M. Johnston knocked down a three-pointer and Floyd marked a layup to tie the game at 20. Floyd and Carswell added points before T. Johnston hammered a trey to regain the lead, 26-24. Southern State swelled before sophomore guard Brianna Audette (Coatesville, Pa./Coatesville) landed a jumper, sending the teams into halftime with SSCC ahead, 36-28.

Floyd and M. Johnston came out quick, compiling 16 points between the two of them within the first five minutes of second half action. A Moore layup put Greater Allegheny ontop 46-45 before T. Johnston extended that lead with a three-pointer. M. Johnston matched her a little over a minute later with a three to keep Greater Allegheny moving along. Moore and M. Johnston completed a layup apiece before Southern State makes a run back to tie up with Greater Allegheny.

The game finds itself tied at 56 with less than nine minutes left to play. Senior forward Kimberly Hall and Carswell complete both of their foul shots at the line before M. Johnston made a layup. The Johnston sisters alongside Carswell add two apiece before M. Johnston polished off a three-pointer to advance the Lions to a 71-63 lead with five minutes to go.

Floyd finished a layup as T. Johnston marked a layup and a three to continue onward for GA. Floyd added a free-throw before freshman forward Morgan McCallister (North Huntingdon, Pa./Norwin) put up the last points for Greater Allegheny, marking the 82-72 victory.

As a team, Greater Allegheny finished 65% (13-of-20) from the free-throw line. They notched 30 points from the paint along with 18 points off second-chance and 13 points off turnovers. 

M. Johnston went 50% (10-for-20) from the floor alongside completing all three free-throws attempted. She bucketed 26 points with five rebounds. Floyd finished the game with a double-double, marking 21 rebounds and 17 points, along with three assists and three steals. T. Johnston posted 17 points as well, going 54.5% (6-of-11) from the floor and 66.6% (4-of-6) from the three-point line. She also put up six assists and three rebounds.

Day two saw action from Cincinnati-Christian University. Floyd and M. Johnston accomplished layups for Greater Allegheny to start the game, as Cincinnati-Christian found themselves ahead 14-4 eight minutes into the game. Floyd cashed in for another layup before M. Johnston achieved a trey from outside the arc.

Moore, Hall and M. Johnston all bucketed points off of free-throws before M. Johnston dropped four more points from the floor. Floyd matched her four as McCallister denoted the last points before halftime, Cincinnati-Christian ahead 36-23.

M. Johnston put up a jumper a minute into the game as Cincinnati-Christian drove on. Floyd completed a layup as M. Johnston and T. Johnston sunk foul shots. With ten minutes left in regulation, freshman forward Bethany Siebert (Tarrs, Pa./Southmoreland) made a layup. M. Johnston hammered a three-pointer to bring the score to 60-35 before Carswell made a layup. 

Four Greater Allegheny student-athletes completed free-throws before M. Johnston capped off the scoring tally with a layup, GA behind Cincinnati-Christian, 75-50.

As a team, Greater Allegheny completed 64.0% (16-of-25) from the free-throw line. The Lions dropped 24 points in the paint with 12 points on second-chance. 

With Floyd's ten points and 14 rebounds, she has accomplished her 1,000th career point in a Greater Allegheny uniform. M. Johnston finished with 23 points, while she completed 83.3% (5-of-6) of her shots from the free-throw line and 50% (8-of-16) from the floor. 

Greater Allegheny(2-3) takes a few days off before Carlow comes to Wunderley Gymnasium for a 6 p.m. tip-off.