NEW KENSINGTON, Pa. - Although Penn State New Kensington produced perhaps its best quarter of basketball this season to open Friday's home tilt, the Lions could not sustain that strong start, as they ultimately fell to the Carlow University 66-41. With the setback, New Ken dropped to 0-3, while Carlow improved to 3-4 on the campaign.

After the first quarter, the Lions held a 16-10 lead, as the New Ken defense suffocated the Celtics. Carlow, which competes in the River States Conference of the NAIA, connected on just 3 of 20 attempts from the field in the first 10 minutes. Conversely, New Ken shot 4 of 10 in the first quarter, with Erika Finn (New Kensington, Pa/Burrell) pacing the offense with six points.

That six-point advantage for the hosts was erased in the second quarter, however, as Carlow outscored New Ken 21-7. While the Celtics began to find their stroke offensively, the Lions went cold from the field, and also committed nine turnovers in the stanza.

Staked to an 8-point lead at the half, Carlow extended that advantage in the third quarter, as the Celtics outscored the Lions 18-8. Carlow continued its strong second half by closing out the contest with a 14-5 run to account for the final score.

Overall, there was not a wide disparity in the shooting percentages between the teams, as Carlow shot 30.4 percent from the floor, while New Kensington converted on 33.3 percent of its attempts. However, the Celtics had a significant advantage in shot attempts, as the Celtics hoisted up 69 attempts, while New Kensington had just 36 shots. To that point, New Kensington committed 32 turnovers, while Carlow turned the ball over 14 times.

New Kensington was led by Kierra Rose (Uniontown, Pa/Uniontown Area) and Deshaya Chavis (Penn Hills, Pa/Penn Hills), as they tied for the team lead with eight points. Chavis also contributed five rebounds and two steals. Finn and Auveonna Perkins (Arnold, Pa/Valley) paced the Lions with seven rebounds apiece.

Carlow, playing without top scorer and rebounder Emma Stille, relied upon Megan Ost and Angelica Orozco to provide the scoring. They matched for a game-high with 13 points each, while Delaney Daly scored nine points and added a team-leading six rebounds. Keegan Brownlee led the Celtics with three assists, while Carly LaZar contributed four steals.

Penn State New Kensington remains home for its next contest, when it hosts Penn State Beaver at 6 p.m. on Tuesday in the PSUAC opener. Carlow, meanwhile, returns to action on Nov. 23 at Malone University.

Written by: Sean Meyers