Brandywine Concludes Season In PSUAC Semifinals

MONACA, Pa. – Penn State Brandywine led by eight points after the first quarter, but could not sustain the lead as the second-seeded Lions were downed 74-59 by top-seeded Penn State Beaver Friday night in the Penn State University Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Tournament semifinals.

Brandywine, making its 14^th-straight PSUAC Tournament semifinal, finished the year with a record of 18-9, it's seventh-straight 18-win season under Head Coach Larry Johnson.

Brandi James (Glenolden, Pa./Interboro), playing in her final game in a Brandywine uniform, poured in a career high 31 points on 10-of-17 shooting from the field and 11-of-12 shooting at the free throw stripe. She also hauled in 13 rebounds, finishing the season with her third-straight double-double and 10^th overall.

Madison D'Ambrosio (Springfield, Pa./Springfield) was the only additional Lion to reach double figures in scoring, netting 10 points as Brandywine was limited to 38 percent shooting and held without a three-pointer in 11 tries.

Backed by 10 points from James, Brandywine ran out to an 18-10 lead after one quarter. The Lions forced half of Beaver's 16 turnovers during the first 10 minutes, netting eight points following Beaver miscues.

However, the second quarter belonged to the hosts. Mikayla Womer and Jimya Chambers both connected on 4-of-5 shots from the field, combining for 19 points during the period. Womer netted the final four points of the half, giving Beaver its first lead of the evening at 32-30 with a layup just before the buzzer.

Beaver upped the lead to 44-38 midway through the third quarter and then put the game away with an 11-0 run, fueled by seven points from Emily Keener. Brandywine was held scoreless for more than four minutes before layups from D'Ambrosio and James made the score 60-42 at the conclusion of the quarter.

An 11-point fourth quarter from James was not enough for Brandywine to make a comeback as the Lions got as close as 14 points down on two occasions, but would get no closer.

James, who passed Brandywine Athletic Director Bobbi Caprice for eighth all-time in scoring on Friday night, completed her 112-game career with 1,166 points and 797 rebounds.

The game also signaled the end of the Brandywine careers of seniors Brandi Johnson (Media, Pa./Strath Haven), Barbara Johnson (Brookhaven, Pa./Chester), Beatrice Oladeji (Upper Darby, Pa./Penn Wood) and Nicolette Napoleon (Springfield, Pa./Penn Charter).

Beaver, which shot 45 percent and forced 22 turnovers, will face Penn State Lehigh Valley in Sunday's conference championship game.