Women's Basketball Captures AMCC Championship; Lions Down No. 1 La Roche

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The Penn State Behrend women's basketball team won their third Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) Championship with convincing 73-54 win over La Roche on Saturday afternoon at the Kerr Fitness Center.

Score: No. 2 Penn State Behrend 73, No. 1 La Roche 54
Records: Penn State Behrend (19-7), La Roche (21-5)

Noteworthy:

* Morgan Altavilla (Pittsburgh, PA/Baldwin) and Rachel Majewski (Erie, PA/Villa Maria Academy) were named to the All-Tournament Team
* This is the first AMCC title under head coach Christine VanHook
* This is Behrend's first AMCC championship in 20 years (2003-04)
* The Lions earn the AMCC's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament

Key Moments:

* The Lions halted La Roche from winning their fourth straight title, erasing a double-digit deficit and then pulling off a nearly 20-piont victory
* Altavilla had 20 points in the first 25 minutes and finished with a game-high 29 points, knocking down four triples including key three pointers that sparked Behrend's comeback
* The Redhakws started strong and jumped out to a 10-point lead at 17-7 in the first quarter
* From there, Behrend used a 16-0 run to take a 23-17 edge at the 7:15 mark of the second period
* La Roche got within two at halftime, 32-30
* The Lions held the Redhawks scoreless near the end third quarter for two minutes and 10 seconds to regain a 10-point lead at 52-42 after three
* La Roche's had another scoring draught and tallied its first field goal in over five-minute span on the first basket in the fourth quarter
* The Lions took a 12-point lead at 59-47 with 5:25 left to play to force a La Roche timeout
* Behrend held La Roche to just 54 points, almost 30 points lower than their season average
* The Lions allowed just 12 points in the final two quarters to win by 19 and hoist the championship trophy
* Behrend entered the championship on a six-game winning streak with their last loss to La Roche
* Madilyn Boyer (Saxonburg, PA/Knoch) had her first double-double of the season with a 13 points and team-best 15 rebounds
* Majewski finished with 15 points and career-high three blocks

Next Up:

* The Behrend Lions will await the announcement of their first-round opponent during the NCAA Selection Show scheduled for Monday.