Lions Best Briarcliffe For Fourth-Straight Win

MEDIA, Pennsylvania -- The Penn State Brandywine women's basketball team outscored Briarcliffe (N.Y.) 39-21 in the second half and ran away with a 78-54 victory Friday night at the Brandywine Athletic Center.

Brandywine (6-3, 3-0 PSUAC), which led 39-33 after 20 minutes, used baskets from Stacey MacArthur (Newtown Square, Pa./Delco Christian), Alyssa Abbonizio (Springfield, Pa./Springfield) and Chelsea Dent (Yeadon, Pa./Penn Wood) to open the second half with a 7-0 spurt.

After the Bulldogs cut the deficit to nine, Olivia Encarnacion (Glenolden, Pa./Interboro) answered with three consecutive layups to push the lead back to double figures.

Briarcliffe chipped away again, slicing the Lions' lead to nine at the 7:34 mark, but would get no closer as Brandywine used an 8-0 run, keyed by baskets from Dent and Lauren Munro (Glenolden, Pa./Interboro) to build a 17-point lead.

After team led by more than three points during the first 17 minutes of the game, a pair of three-pointers, the second of which came from Kiara Johnson, helped Briarcliffe build a 27-22 edge.

Brandywine caught fire from beyond the arc during the final three minutes as MacArthur drained a pair of trifectas and Chrissy Gledhill (Secane, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara) followed with two triples of her own during a 13-2 run that gave the Lions the lead.

Briarcliffe closed within two after Shemique Hooks sank a pair of free throws, but baskets from Munro and Jessy Gledhill (Secane, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara) helped Brandywine close out the opening half with a six-point cushion.

Munro produced season highs with 18 points and 11 rebounds, while adding four assists and two steals. MacArthur (13 points) and Jessy Gledhill (11 points) also reached double figures, while Dent tallied eight points off the bench.

Jessy Gledhill dished out six assists and Cashae Hinton (Norristown, Pa./Norristown) added six steals and five helpers.

Brandywine shot nearly 35 percent (31-89) and recorded assists on 19-of-31 baskets. Briarcliffe was limited to 26 percent shooting (18-69), but held a 59-54 edge on the boards.

Johnson netted 23 points, while Hooks tallied 12 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Bulldogs.

Following a break for finals and the holidays, Brandywine returns to the court January 3rd with a 5:00 pm home game against Cedar Crest.