Women's Basketball Falls to #13 Scranton

Scranton, Pa.- A massive second quarter by Scranton doomed the Juniata women's basketball team as they lost, 62-45, Saturday afternoon at the John Long Center. 

Morgan Instone (Johnstown, Pa./Bishop McCort) had 15 points, nine rebounds and two blocks while Dani Atkinson (Lancaster, Pa./Lancaster Catholic) had 11 points and three rebounds. Veronica Cosmopolis (Lima, Peru/Colegio Carmelitas) added five points and three rebounds off the bench and Bethany Spencer (York, Pa./York Suburban) tallied four points, four assists, three rebounds and four steals.  

Instone opened the game with an and-one and made the foul shot as the Eagles led 3-0 early. Neither team scored for the next two minutes before the Royals converted their own and-one to tie the score at 3-3. Scranton scored the next five points before an Atkinson jumper and two Spencer free throws made it 8-7. The Royals sunk a three and Atkinson scored on a layup as the Eagles trailed by two heading into the second.

A jumper and another converted and-one by Scranton put them up 16-9 before Atkinson drilled a three to narrow the gap to four.  A 13-0 run by the Royals put them up 29-12 before a Makayla Carles (Tyrone, Pa./Bellwood-Antis) layup off a pass from Gracie Stauffer (Loysville, Pa./West Perry) finally broke the drought for the Eagles. Scranton tacked on two more jumpers as Juniata trailed 33-14 at halftime.

The third quarter saw Scranton continue to control the game as they outscored JC 17-10 in the third and led 50-24.

Juniata won the fourth quarter, 21-12 but never got closer than 17 at any point in the fourth.

The Eagles return to action at home against Elizabethtown on Wednesday. Tipoff is 7:00 p.m.