WASHINGTON – The third-seeded Gallaudet University women's basketball team willed its way to a 62-52 victory over No. 6 seed Penn State Harrisburg here Saturday in the quarterfinal round of the United East tournament in the Field House.

Gallaudet (16-10) outscored Penn St.-Harrisburg (18-9) in the second half by the tune of 41-27 after the Bison trailed 25-21 at the half.

The Bison advance to the semifinal round where it will face No. 2 seed Penn St.-Abington (18-7) this Tuesday, Feb. 25, at 6 p.m. on the road.

Sophomore guard Cam Lexow (Abington, Pa.) and senior guard Raj Guettler (Frederick, Md.) came to life in the second half. Guettler, who was held to zero points and rebounds in the first half, scored nine points and grabbed 11 rebounds over the course of the final 20 minutes. Lexow scored nine of her team-high 13 points in the fourth quarter.

On the other side of the court, Penn St. Harrisburg graduate student forward Jordan Carpenter was held to a season low eight points. The University of Mary Washington transfer and a two-time Women's Basketball Coaches Association All-American honorable mention selection entered the game leading the United East with a scoring average of 19.7 points per game. In fact, the last time Carpenter was in the Field House (Dec. 4, 2024) she netted a career-high 34 points against the Bison.

Carpenter had a solid first half on Saturday with four points, six rebounds and five blocks. In the second half, she only had four points, four rebounds and no blocks as Gallaudet's swarming defense made an impact.

GU shot 46.4 percent from the field (13 for 28) in the second half after the Bison entered halftime with a shooting percentage of 31.0 percent (9 for 29).

The Bison bench played a pivotal role in the game as the four reserves tallied 20 points including several big shots in the second half.

Senior guards Crystal Salit (Boyds, Md.) and Sunita Schmidjorg (Austin, Texas) netted seven points each including one 3-pointer. Salit drained her 3-pointer at the 2:07 mark in the third quarter to give GU a 36-31 lead, its largest margin at that point in the game.

Gallaudet outscored Penn St. Harrisburg 15-8 in the third quarter as the Lions made two 3-pointers early before the Bison went on an 11-0 run, punctuated by Salit's 3-pointer, over a four-minute stretch.

Down low the combination of junior center Hannah Puent (Indianapolis, Ind.) and senior center Alexis Roberts (Newton, Miss.) did work to fluster the Lions. Puent finished the game with 10 points and eight rebounds (five on the defensive side) and one block and steal. Roberts contributed four points, five defensive rebounds and two assists in 18 crucial minutes played.

Senior guard Claire Ruiz-Tucker (Middletown, Md.) tallied eight points and matched Schmidjorg with a team-high three assists.

In the first quarter the Lions only made four shots, but they were all 3-pointers as GU held a slim 13-12 lead after Schmidjorg drained a 3-pointer with nine second left.

Penn State Harrisburg made a fifth 3-pointer to begin the second quarter as the Lions didn't score its first two-point basket until the 5:45 mark when Carpenter made a layup to snap a 0 for 11 streak from the field, not including 3-point shots.

Freshmen Mikayla Coleman and Sam Shaak led the Lions with three 3-pointers made each as Coleman netted a game-high 15 points and Shaak chipped in 11 points. Senior forward Ali Lister finished with nine points, 10 rebounds, a game-high seven assists and a team-high four steals.

The Lions finished the game 19 for 63 (30.2 percent) from the field, the second lowest mark this season. Harrisburg recorded eight blocks, the most in a game against GU this year.

BISON TRACKS

• Lexow made a game-high five steals and a team-high two blocks
• This is the second straight game the Bison finished with 22 made field goals
• GU has now won five games following a loss this season
• Gallaudet went 2-1 against Harrisburg this season as the Bison won both games on Padden Court
• The Bison are now 5-12 in the series with the Lions
• GU women's basketball program has won 16 or more games in four of the past six seasons

UP NEXT
Gallaudet will travel to Abington, Pa., to face Penn St.-Abington for a third time this season. The Bison have defeated Penn St.-Abington twice with a 66-57 home win (Jan. 16) and a 75-63 road win (Feb. 13) just nine days ago.