Box Score
Video Interviews (Tanya Longo and Danielle Smith)
SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. --
Danielle Smith recorded her first collegiate double-double and the Slippery Rock University women's basketball team closed the game with a 9-0 run to earn a 67-64 win over Notre Dame College (Ohio) Saturday afternoon at Morrow Field House. The win snapped a six-game losing streak for SRU and an eight-game winning streak for the Falcons.
Grace Palucis, who was 0-for-9 from the field at the time, sank a 3-pointer with 15 seconds left that put The Rock (1-6) on top for good and gave first-year head coach
Tanya Longo her first win at SRU. Notre Dame (9-2) had a chance in the final seconds, but turned the ball over on an inbounds play to seal the SRU win.
Smith finished with game-highs of 17 points and 13 rebounds to lead Slippery Rock. Her 13 rebounds were a career-high for the junior transfer.
Sherita Stanley added 15 points and nine rebounds, while
Marlynda Harland finished with 14 points and six rebounds off the bench.
Shannon Lee also recorded a double-double, scoring 10 points and handing out 10 assists as The Rock placed four players in double-figure scoring for the first time all season.
Notre Dame was led by double-double performances from Yvette Hunter and Kealy McNally. Hunter finished with 15 points and 11 rebounds, while McNally added 14 points and 11 boards.
SRU finished the game shooting 39.3 percent from the field, converting on 24-of-61 attempts, including 5-of-18 from behind the 3-point arc. The Rock was 14-of-23 from the free throw line for a percentage of 60.9.
Notre Dame finished the game shooting 38.7 percent from the field, hitting 24-of-62 attempts, including 4-of-17 3-pointers. The Falcons were 12-of-16 from the charity stripe (75.0 percent).
Just as the last few games of the season, Saturday's game started out slowly for The Rock, with Notre Dame scoring the first six points of the game and jumping out to an 11-point lead at 15-4 with 12:57 to play in the half.
The Rock clawed back into the game with a 10-2 run to cut the lead to 17-14 with 8:46 to play in the first stanza. The teams traded baskets over the next few minutes until a 3-pointer from Stanley tied the game for the first time at 23-23 with 2:58 to play.
Lee and Harland hit layups on Slippery Rock's next two possessions to put The Rock out front for the first time, leading to a 29-25 halftime advantage.
It didn't take long for Notre Dame to regain the lead, as the Falcons took a 32-31 lead with 17:36 to play in the second half. The lead changed four times over the next seven minutes until Notre Dame took a 47-46 lead with 10:12 to play.
The Falcons pushed the lead to as much as six points, and held a 64-58 advantage with 1:17 to play, before The Rock closed the game with a 9-0 run to seal the win.
Harland scored back-to-back layups to cut the lead to two points at 64-62 with 51 seconds to play, and Palucis knocked down her only good field goal of the game, a 3-pointer that put Slippery Rock up 65-64 with 15 seconds left.
Harland rebounded a missed shot on Notre Dame's next possession and Lee hit one free throw to push the lead to 66-64 with four seconds left. On the inbounds pass, Hunter turned the ball over and Smith knocked down one free throw to end the game at 67-64.
Slippery Rock will break now for the holidays and will return to action with a road game at Seton Hill Dec. 30. Tipoff for the game is set for 2 p.m. The Rock will open the new year with Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference crossover games away at East Stroudsburg and Kutztown Jan. 3-4 before returning home to host Bloomsburg and Mansfield in crossovers Jan. 8-9.