ERIE, Pa. – The Hilbert College women's basketball team suffered the dreaded turnover bug this afternoon as they found themselves in a deep hole by half time.  The Hawks, with limited offensive possessions, dropped a lopsided 78-42 road game to the 1st place Penn State Behrend Lions.

Hilbert continues to battle for a spot heading into the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference post-season tournament.  After today's league results became available, Hilbert remained  in 5th place, and, with three games remaining in their regular season schedule, the Hawks hold a one game lead over both Penn State Altoona  and Mount Aloysius, two of their next three opponents. 

THE BASICS              

• Final Score: Penn State Behrend  78 |  Hilbert 42
• Location: Junker Center | Erie, Pa.
• Records:  Lions 17-3, 11-1 AMCC | Hawks 6-16, 5-8 AMCC 

HIGHLIGHTS 

• Alesia Hamm led the Hawks with three assists and 10 rebounds, earning seven of the team's 17 offensive rebounds.
• Macy Kisner made 9-of-10 free throws and finished the game with a team-high 13 points and Grace Zabawa drilled all three of her 3-point attempts to add 11 points off the bench. 

HOW IT HAPPENED 

• Hilbert fell behind 29-8 after 10 minutes of action.  The Hawks committed 10 turnovers in the first quarter which resulted in only 14 field goal attempts.  Four different Hawks scored a bucket in that frame.
• Ashley Schroeder did her best to get the Hawks back on the scoreboard, knocking down 2-of-3 beyond the arc, as she led with eight second-quarter points.  Zabawa connected on her first deep shot that quarter as well, but Hilbert continued to be out of synch offensively as they committed ten additional turnovers before intermission.
• Hilbert settled down after half time and played a competitive 3rd quarter against the Lions. 
• Kisner drew three trips to the foul line and make all six attempts, Zabawa struck again outside the line and Kendyl Kerner added three rebounds and a bucket as Hilbert played to a one-point spread (16-15) in a ten-minute stretch.
• Kisner (5) and Zabawa (3) combined for all eight Hilbert points and Kisner earned two of her team-high four blocks in the final frame.   
• Maria Spinelli, who saw several minutes in the first three quarter, never left the court in the 4th. 
• Katie Kociszewski and Rebecca Mormarato each chipped in on the glass and pulled down a defensive rebound before the final horn. 

GAME NOTES

• Hilbert finished the game hitting 30.4-percent from the floor (14-46), made 50% of their 3-point shots and went 9-for-12 from the foul line.
• Penn State Behrend, based on Hilbert's 34 turnovers, attempted 20 additional field goals than the Hawks, hitting 45.6% (31-68).  The Lions made 10-of-12 from the charity stripe.
• Hilbert controlled the boards, building a 41-31 advantage but gave up 15 offensive rebounds to the hosts.

WHAT'S NEXT

The women's basketball team has a week off from competition as they don't compete again until next Saturday.  The Hawks will host Penn State Altoona February 12 in a 1pm double header in the Hafner.