By: Frank Maira, Assistant Director of Athletics/Sports Information Director

MONT ALTO, Pa. – The Penn State Mont Alto women's basketball team fell behind in the second half on Friday evening as PSU Brandywine bested them by a 64-42 score. Mont Alto clinched the No. 4 seed in the PSUAC Tournament as they had the upper hand in a tiebreaker and will travel to Penn State Beaver on Tuesday.

Inside the Box Score

• Mont Alto shot 29.3% from the field and knocked down 5-of-21 attempts from downtown. Kara Newell (Shippensburg, Pa. / Shippensburg) led the way with 11 points.
• Nicki Velez scored 23 points as Penn State Brandywine secured the No. 1 seed in the PSUAC East.
• PSUMA turned the ball over 27 times and the visitors scored 31 points off the miscues.

How it Happened

• Mont Alto grabbed an early 6-5 lead as neither team shot particularly well through the first four minutes of play. Brandywine began to settle in and outscored PSUMA 14-6 over the last 3:47 of the quarter. The run was sparked by a Nicki Velez trey as her team led 19-12.
• Brandywine opened the second quarter on a 9-0 run and extended its lead to 28-12. Kara Newell (Shippensburg, Pa. / Shippensburg) nailed a 3-pointer with 2:30 left in the half. It wasn't enough to slow the visitors down as they took a 34-19 lead into the break.
• PSUMA started cold from the field for first few minutes of the third quarter and Brandywine built a 25-point lead (52-27) before a Newell jumper in the paint started a bit of a home spurt.
• Mont Alto never was able to mount a comeback in the fourth quarter, but a Christine Cornman (Spring Grove, Pa. / Spring Grove) made it 62-40 with a 3-pointer with 1:48 left.

Mont Alto has played PSU Beaver twice this season, but will look to play much like they did in January, which was a much closer game. Game time is to be determined for the road matchup.