Feb. 20, 2007

Box Score

February 19, 2007 - Dallas, PA.- Heading into the first round of the P.A.C. playoffs head coach Frank Farnese new his team was going to be challenged by their opponent. Farnese stated, "The College of Misericordia has three solid basketball players we have to key on, Amy Hughes, Ericka Morrison and Lacey DeGraw." Farnese's instincts were correct the Knights were challenged by Misericordia. More importantly, the Knights demonstrated their talents and strengths too as they rose to the occasion and defeated the The College of Misericordia in double overtime 86-83.

Led by senior point guard Kim Hinkle's career high 26 points the Knights showed they weren't backing down from the Cougars and led for most of regulation. With 29 seconds left in regulation the Knights found themselves down by two 69-67. That is when Hinkle decided she wasn't going to let her career or the team's season end. Driving hard to the basket Hinkle was fouled with 17 seconds left in regulation. She calmly hit both free throws. Surprisingly, the Cougars turned the ball over giving it right back to Neumann. The Knights were unable to convert the opportunity and the game head to overtime.

The first overtime was a microcosm of regulation. The Knights grabbed the early lead and controlled the tempo. However, with freshmen guard Brittany Whetts fouling out Misericordia battled back to tie the score with one second remaining in the overtime on a lay-up from Morrison.

In the second overtime the Cougars grabbed the momentum early trying to take the game. However, the Knights zone defense began to stymie their opponents. Sophomore forward Tara DiPhillipo played great defense all night long and came up big again helping shut down the Cougar's Morrision the rest of the way. A Misericordia lead quickly turned into a tied ball game at 83-83 with 1:40 to play.

The teams settled down into the final frames of the game with Hinkle rising to the moment again. With 27 seconds on the game clock and Neumann with the ball Hinkle drove into the lane and made a swooping lay-up to give the Knights an 85-83 lead. The Cougars took the ball and quickly advanced down the court only to miss their attempt at tying the game. The Knights grabbed the rebound on the missed shot and got the ball to Sophomore guard Ashley Pearsall. Pearsall attempted to dribble out the remaining seconds and was fouled in the process. She went to the foul line making one of her foul shots and giving the Neumann's it winning score of 86-83.

Head Coach Frank Farnese was thrilled with the victory and effort of the team. He explained his feelings in his post game interview, "This was truly a great team effort. Our kids were challenged by Misericordia about ten days ago when the draw came out for the playoffs and we learned we were going to play them again we knew we had an opportunity to come back and play our style of basketball." Farnese continued by saying, "One of our goals this season was to give the team a chance at the playoffs again. We had a taste of that last season and personally I wanted them to have it again. This game gave us that opportunity. I thought our defense was solid. Our zone was terrific. The kids played it well. I thought they communicated with each other and that was effective in keying on Misericordia's key players."

The Knights will head to Gwynedd Mercy College on Wednesday night for the semi-finals of the P.A.C. women's basketball tournament. The Knights enter the game as the fifth seeded team with a record of 18-8. Gwynedd Mercy will enter the game as the top seeded team with an overall record of 23-2. The game will start at 7 p.m.