Marywood Women’s Basketball November recap

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Photo credit/ Jason Ardan

Sophomore Guard Abbey McGee (21) pushes the pace for the Pacers.

Nov. 9: Home vs. Penn College

The Pacers hosted Penn College in their season debut. The defense came to play, tallying 12 steals and holding Penn College to only 43 points, winning 73-43. The offense caught fire in the third quarter, putting up 28 points on an 81% shooting pace from the floor. Marywood had four double-digit scorers, led by sophomore guard Abbey McGee.

Nov. 15: Away vs. University of Scranton

The Pacers traveled across town to face #10 ranked University of Scranton. Marywood and Scranton battled back-and-forth, with five lead changes in the first quarter, which ended with Marywood trailing 15-12. From there, it was all Scranton, leading by as many as 23 and finishing the victory by a final score of 67-51. The Pacers only had one double-digit scorer, senior guard Savannah Purdy, who tallied 14 points.

Nov. 17: Home vs. Rutgers-Newark

The Pacers returned home to host Rutgers-Newark. The Pacers dominated the game, trailing for only 30 seconds before winning 72-61. Though the Pacers scored 72 points, they failed to convert a single three-point shot in 11 attempts. The Pacers were led by sophomore guard Olivia Ciullo, who scored 20 points and grabbed 15 rebounds, including seven from the offensive glass.

Nov. 19: Away vs. Wilkes University

Participating in the Cross County Challenge, the Pacers traveled to Arnaud C. Marts Center to face tournament host Wilkes. The first quarter went back-and-forth, with the Pacers leading at the buzzer, 19-16. The Pacers offense was stifled in the second quarter, scoring only seven points and trailing at the half, 32-26. The Pacers kept pace with Wilkes, though they were unable to take the lead in the third quarter. The final quarter was all Marywood, who took the lead and held it the rest of the way, winning 68-60. The Pacers had four double-digit scorers, led by Ciullo with 17 points. The team also had a pair of players with double-doubles. McGee grabbed 11 rebounds along with her 16 points and sophomore forward Stephanie Klemick tallied 14 points and 10 boards.

Nov. 20: Away vs. King’s College

Returning to the Marts Center for the Cross County Challenge championship, the Pacers squared off against King’s College. The game was close from start to finish, with only one lead change, early in the first quarter, thanks to a layup from Purdy. Marywood outscored King’s every quarter but the fourth, finalizing the win 67-61. McGee led the way in scoring, contributing 21 points to the Pacers’ fourth victory of the season. Ciullo contributed her second double-double of the season, grabbing 11 rebounds to go with her 16 points.

Nov. 28: Away vs. Wilkes University

Following the Thanksgiving break, the Pacers traveled back to the Marts Center, for their second matchup of the year against Wilkes. This matchup was all Pacers, leading 30-21 at the halftime break. The second half featured more dominant basketball from the Pacers, as they led by as many as 19 points before recording their second win versus Wilkes, 77-66. The Pacers had three double-digit scorers, along with a pair of double-doubles. Ciullo (24 points, 12 rebounds), Purdy (18 points), and McGee (16 points,13 rebounds) led the way.

Nov. 30: Home vs. Susquehanna University

For the Pacers’ final matchup of the month of November, they returned home to face the Susquehanna River Hawks. The usually consistent-scoring Pacers struggled, only shooting 31.7% from the field. A strong defense overcame the offensive woes and limited the River Hawks to shooting 30.9% while forcing 22 turnovers, including10 steals. Neither team led the contest by more than six points. The Pacers went into halftime up by three, 26-23. They never trailed in the second half, finalizing the victory 53-44. Despite the team’s poor shooting, they did have two double digit performances. McGee led the way in scoring with 18 points, as well as pulling down a team-high 12 boards. Ciullo was the other double-digit scorer, tallying 16 points.

The Pacers’ ended their first month of the season on a five-game winning streak and now sit at 6-1. Ciullo led the Pacers in scoring in November, averaging 16.1 points per game, tying her career high with 24 points against Wilkes being her best performance of the month. Ciullo also led the Pacers in rebounds, averaging nine per game, with her peak performance of 15 against Rutgers-Newark. McGee led the team in assists, racking up a pair of six assist performances. She also averaged 4.6 rebounds per game.

The Pacers resume their season on Dec. 6 when they host the SUNY Delhi Broncos.

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