Brandywine Tops Hazleton For Senior Day Victory

MEDIA, Pa. – The Penn State Brandywine women's basketball team celebrated Senior Day by defeating Penn State Hazleton 71-55 on Saturday afternoon.

Brandywine ran out to a 6-0 lead through three minutes, but Azaria Johnson kept Hazleton in the game, scoring the next seven points and 11 overall during the opening period, and the teams were tied 13-all after one.

The teams remained square after two minutes of quarter No. 2 before Dairayonna Stewart-Harold (New Castle, Del./William Penn) sparked a 9-0 Brandywine spurt with a layup. Athena Brombacher (Vacaville, Calif./Will C. Wood) and Amanda Floyd (Glenolden, Pa./Interboro) followed with baskets before Stewart-Harold capped the run with a three-pointer. 

Hazleton trimmed the margin to five with 69 seconds to play in the half, but an Anaiyah Allen (Lutz, Fla./Steinbrenner) handed Brandywine a 33-26 edge at intermission.

Floyd accounted for Brandywine's first seven points of the second half as the lead swelled to double figures. The duo of Brombacher and Floyd combined for 18 of Brandywine's 22 third quarter points and the Lions held a commanding 55-38 advantage entering the final period. Floyd canned her third triple of the day late in the fourth quarter to hand Brandywine its largest lead of the afternoon at 22 points.

Floyd topped the Lions in scoring with 21 points and added eight rebounds, six steals and five assists. Brombacher posted 14 points and a career-high 15 boards, while Allen tallied 17 points and eight rebounds. Kiara Koger (Philadelphia, Pa./Neumann-Goretti) notched seven points, seven rebounds and seven assists.

Brandywine overcame 28 percent shooting from the field by forcing 30 Hazleton turnovers. The Lions shot 13-of-17 from the free throw stripe. 

Brandywine (13-10, 11-6 PSUAC) will host Penn State Wilkes-Barre for its home finale Tuesday at 6:00 PM.