WASHINGTON - The Gallaudet University women's basketball team prevailed 67-62 over Penn St.-Berks in the 2018 North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) tournament quarterfinals here Tuesday night in the Field House on Padden Court.

Gallaudet (13-13) will advance to the NEAC championship weekend being hosted by SUNY Poly in Marcy, N.Y. The Bison will face Keuka College (19-5) in the second semifinal on Saturday, Feb. 24, at 4 p.m.

The Bison led after each quarter in the first half and took a six-point lead, 30-24, into halftime. In the third quarter, the Nittany Lions (10-12) battled back as they erased a 10-point Bison led down to zero. Penn St.-Berks scored the final seven points of the quarter including a three-point buzzer-beater by Kylie Herman (29 points) as the teams entered the fourth quarter knotted at 41.

GU went on a 12-4 run in the first two minutes and a half in the fourth as the visitors were forced to call timeout to regroup down 52-45. The Bison pushed their lead to double digits, again, late in the quarter and secured the win at the free throw line in the end.

Junior guard/forward Hannah Neild (Litchfield, N.H.), one of Division III's leading scorers, kept up with her scoring average as she netted 23 points. She completed the double-double with 16 rebounds along with two blocks and two steals. Junior guard Sabina Shysh (Tucson, Ariz.) recorded her fifth double-double this season with 21 points and 12 rebounds to go with three steals, two blocks and two assists. Senior forward Kelsey Hudson (Blissfield, Mich.) tied Neild with a game-high 16 rebounds and added seven points. Freshman guard Emelia Beldon (Frederick, Md.) netted 10 points, passed out a game-high seven assists and made two blocks.

Herman led all-scorers with 29 points as she made 11 of 30 shots from the field and grabbed 13 rebounds for her own double-double. Jennifer Martin added a double-double with 10 points and 14 rebounds and a team-high four assists.

BISON TRACKS

• Senior Lawjen Ashmore (Fairbanks, Alaska) made a career-high three blocks and 11 rebounds
• Junior Kelli Barnes (Cliffside, N.C.) added two blocks
• Gallaudet made a season-high 10 blocks in the win
• The Bison scored 30 points in the paint
• Gallaudet scored 18 points off 15 Penn St.-Berks' turnovers
• Both teams passed out 11 assists
• GU outrebounded Penn St.-Berks by 18 (66-48)
• The game featured five ties and one lead change
• GU went 2-1 against Penn St.-Berks this season
• Gallaudet is now 3-1 all-time in NEAC quarterfinal games
• The Bison are 3-0 in NEAC quarterfinal games in the Field House

UP NEXT
Gallaudet will face Keuka for the first time this season as the two teams didn't face each other during the regular season. Top-seed SUNY Poly (20-6) will go up against Penn St.-Abington (14-11) in the other semifinal at 2 p.m.