Juniata women’s hoops survives shooting slump in 58-54 win at Drew

MADISON, N.J. – Juniata College women's basketball shot just 39 percent from the field to Drew University's 48 percent, but managed to eke out a 58-54 Landmark Conference win over the Rangers on Friday night at Baldwin Gym.

The Eagles, ranked 12^th in the USA Today/ESPN poll and 13^th in the D3hoops.com ranking, improved to 18-1 overall with the victory, and remained undefeated in Landmark play with an
8-0 mark.

Juniata overcame four ties and eight lead changes in the see-saw game, with the Eagles finally getting the decisive bucket with just 2:05 left in the game. Junior Alyssia Gordon's (Spring Grove, Pa./Spring Grove) layup gave Juniata a 55-54 lead.

A pair of missed 3-pointers by the Rangers eventually resulted in the ball finding its way to senior Ashton Bankos (York, Pa./York Central), who hit a jumper to extend the Juniata lead to three points. Bankos was fouled on the shot, and converted the traditional three-point play to give the Eagles what turned out to be the final score at 58-54.

Drew took four more attempts at the basket, including a pair of treys, but all were wide of the mark as Juniata hung on for the win.

Juniata had trailed Drew much of the first half, with Rangers taking a seven-point lead, 23-16, on a Danielle Barber jumper with 7:19 left in the half.  The Eagles outscored the Rangers 13-6 over the remainder of the opening half, tying the game with 48 seconds left in the frame on a pair of Kate McDonald (Pennsylvania Furnace, Pa./State College Area) free throws.

Gordon led the Eagles with 20 points, largely built on a 9-of-16 mark from the field. McDonald logged a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds; the 13 boards matches her season high.

Bankos tallied seven points and dished out four assists in the win. Jordan Hileman (Williamsburg, Pa./Williamsburg) had eight points off the bench in the win.

Drew (6-13, 2-6 Landmark) was paced offensively by Barber with 24 points, including four 3-pointers in her 9-of-15 effort from the field. Victoria Ault netted 14 points in the losing cause.

Juniata concludes the Landmark weekend on Saturday, Jan. 28, when it faces the United States Merchant Marine Academy at 2:00 p.m. in Kings Point, N.Y.

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