BRADFORD, Pa. - The Penn State Altoona women's basketball team rolled to a second consecutive win on Wednesday night, when the Lions posted an 89-51 victory against Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference opponent Pitt-Bradford at the KOA Arena.  

In the lopsided victory, Penn State Altoona went onto the record books in several categories. The team tied for most assists, tied for seventh most field goals attempted, and tied for ninth most field goals scored.  

Penn State Altoona (11-6, 6-2 AMCC) dominated the first half, playing to a 55-20 advantage at halftime and holding Pitt-Bradford (0-17, 0-9 AMCC) to only 10 points in each quarter. The Lions let up the offensive pressure slightly in the second half but held on to win by 38 points.

Avana Sayles (Venetia, PA/Peters Township) led the Lions in points, scoring 19. With her 19-point performance, Sayles becomes the all-time leading scorer in both women's and men's basketball, surpassing former Lion men's basketball player Tyler Franklin who had 1,533 career points.  

Alongside Sayles, there were four other players who finished with double-digit points. Lanie Wilt (Altoona, PA/Altoona) and Allyana Stephens (Johnstown, PA/Bishop McCort) each scored 12 points, while Haley Hicks (Wylie, TX/Wylie East) and Madison Rusnica (DuBois, PA/DuBois) each scored 10 points. Hicks and Halle Kuzminski (Warren, PA/Warren) both led the team in rebounds with eight.  

For the Panthers, Amber Murak had a game-high 23 points, while Dalayla Alexander chipped in 18 points.  

Pitt-Bradford led after two minutes following a jump shot from Ella Gettings. The Lions fired back, going on a 12-2 run at 7:51. In the run, Wilt had two points, Jaidyn McCracken (Bellwood, PA/Bellwood-Antis) had two points, Rusnica had four points, and Sayles had four points. The run gave the Lions a nine-point lead with 4:15 remaining in the quarter.  

The Lions combined for a 15-2 run at the 3:46 mark, as Sayles scored a jump shot, Stephens scored two consecutive three-pointers, McCracken scored a three-pointer as well as a layup, and Hicks scored a layup. The layup by Hicks gave the Lions a 20-point lead. Pitt-Bradford broke into double digits with 00:32 remaining in the first quarter, as Murak made a jump shot to make it 28-10. The Lions would have the last basket in the quarter though, as Hicks scored a jump shot to restore the Lions' 20-point lead.  

Penn State Altoona started the second quarter on fire, going a 12-1 run in the first three minutes. During the run, Sayles scored six points, Wilt scored four, and McCracken scored two. McCracken's layup made the score 42-11 in favor of the Lions. The Panthers tried to cut the Lions' lead, scoring five points in the following two-and-a-half minutes, but the Lions responded through layups from Rusnica and Hicks.  

The Lions had the last basket of the second quarter as well, with Stephens scoring her third three-pointer of the game to make it 55-20. 

In the third quarter, the Lions went on a 10-2 run at 8:35, with Rusnica scoring a layup, Stephens scoring a three-pointer, Addi Schirato (Salix, PA/Forest Hills) scoring a jump shot, and Elizabeth Painter (Connellsville, PA/Connellsville) scoring a three-pointer. Painter's three-point shot gave the Lions a 46-point lead, their largest of the game.  

From then on, Penn State Altoona took their foot off the gas, as Pitt-Bradford went on an 8-0 run with 3:47 remaining. The run closed the gap to 38 points.  

The fourth quarter was much more even in terms of scoring as the Lions looked to close out the game, and the Panthers looked to lessen the one-sided scoreline. 

At 5:36 in the fourth quarter, the Panthers closed the gap to 31 points after Murak scored a jump shot. The Lions responded, with Kuzminski scoring two points, Schirato scoring three points, Painter scoring three points, and Ellie Irvin (Calvin, PA/Southern Huntingdon) scoring two points. The 10 points extended the Lions' lead back to 41 points.

Hicks would score the last points of the game for the Lions, scoring a layup and free throw at 2:10. Pitt-Bradford then scored two jumpers as the game finished 89-51 in favor of the Lions.  

The Penn State Altoona women's basketball team will look to get their third straight win this Saturday, January 31, as they face AMCC foe Hilbert College at Adler Arena. Tipoff is set for 1:00 p.m.