Jan. 7, 2007

Final Stats

Cheyney, Pa. - Nikki Presto poured in a team-high 17 points Sunday afternoon to lead The Rock to a 60-55 win over hosting Cheyney in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference "crossover" action.

The win was The Rock's fourth in the last seven outings and gives the Green and White a 5-7 record heading into Wednesday's 6 p.m. PSAC-Western Division opener vs. Lock Haven in Morrow Field House.

With the win, seventh-year Rock head coach Laurel Heilman took over sole possession of second place on the SRU career wins list.

The captain of SRU's only PSAC championship team in 1985-86, Heilman now owns an 82-92 record as her alma mater's head coach, one more win than her former mentor, Kathy Walton (81-68 record from 1982-88).

Dr. Anne Griffiths is SRU's all-time leader in career wins with 111 in nine seasons (1970-79).

Chere' Marshall chipped in nine points to aid The Rock cause Sunday, while Jessica Schake grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.

The game was your classic "nip-and-tuck" affair as neither team was really able to take firm control of the lead.

SRU had a six-point (18-12) lead with 5:15 left to play in the first half, but found itself down by one point, 19-18, two minutes later.

Two ties and two lead changes later, Cheyney (3-8) took a narrow 25-24 lead into intermission.

The Rock scored six of the first points in the second half to take a 32-27 lead with 18:20 left in the game, only to see Cheyney charge back and take a 33-32 edge with just less than 16 minutes left.

SRU took the lead for good with just less than nine minutes remaining and held a seven-point lead -- the largest advantage of the game for either team -- on three separate occasions.

After hosting Lock Haven on Wednesday, The Rock will start a three-game road trip with back-to-back PSAC "crossover" games next Saturday and Sunday at Bloomsburg and Mansfield.

SRU visits PSAC-West rival Edinboro on Jan. 17, then has a week off before hosting division foe Indiana U. of Pa. in a 6 p.m. game on Jan. 24.