SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – The Slippery Rock University women's basketball team kept pace with the third ranked team in the nation through the early stages of the game but ended up falling 74-50 to Gannon University Wednesday at Morrow Field House.
 
SRU fell to 1-11 on the season having gone 1-8 through Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference competition. The No. 3 Golden Knights picked up their 15^th consecutive win while improving to 18-1 overall and 10-0 in the PSAC.
 
Freshman standout Regan Atkins shot 6-of-10 from the floor (.600) in a team-leading 18-point effort. Fellow first-year teammate Anye Washington tallied 12 points off the bench.
 
Endya Robinson pulled in seven rebounds in addition to the eight points she scored. The Chicago native also added two steals and two assists. Kaylin Venick joined Robinson in earning two of Slippery Rock's seven steals.
 
After Gannon's Kate Ratliff made a layup 12 seconds into the contest, Deryn Moye responded just 19 seconds later with her sixth straight made 3-pointer of the season. The Golden Knights took another lead 46 seconds into the game before Atkins put The Rock back on top, 5-4, with a fastbreak layup with 7:36 to play in the opening quarter.
 
While that would be the only lead Slippery Rock ended up retaining for the remainder of the game, The Rock continued to answer the call through the beginning stages of the game to keep Gannon within striking distance. Six first quarter points from Robinson held Gannon back from holding anything larger than a four-point lead.
 
A quick breakaway layup from Robinson with seven seconds left in the first quarter cut the deficit to 13-11. The Rock shot their game high 5-of-9 (.556) from the floor in the first frame as opposed to Gannon's 4-of-13 (.308) effort.
 
Gannon would not create a double-digit lead until there was 3:57 remaining in the first half when a 3-pointer from Carissa Dunham made it 28-18. The Golden Knights maintained that advantage into a 32-20 lead at halftime.
 
Slippery Rock was outscored 17-11 in the third quarter, with SRU's final seven points all coming from a 3-of-3 run from Atkins that included an and-1 free throw.
 
After beginning the fourth quarter down 49-31, Slippery Rock produced its highest-scoring period with a 19-point fourth quarter. Washington led the charge, with 10 of her 12 total points appearing in the final 10 minutes of play. Gannon was able to conclude its methodical night with 28 bench points, stretching the lead to a 24-point decision when the final whistle blew.   
 
Samantha Pirosko led Gannon with 18 points and seven rebounds as her team shot an impressive 28-of-55 (.509) on the night. Slippery Rock shot just narrowly below 40 percent going 17-of-43 (.395).
 
Neither side was afraid to fire the 3-pointer, as Gannon went 6-of-20 (.300) and Slippery Rock converted 2-of-15 (.133) from beyond the arc. On the flipside, the foul line proved to be lucrative for both teams as Gannon made 12-of-14 (.857) and SRU hit 14-of-18 (.778) from the stripe. Slippery Rock ended up being outrebounded through the game, 30-24.
 
The Rock will hit the road for a 1 p.m. tipoff Saturday at Pitt-Johnstown.




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