Box Score

EDINBORO, PA – A double-double by Ashley Stoner (Pittsburgh, Pa. /Thomas Jefferson) led five Crimson Hawks in double-figures while Marita Mathe (Indiana, Pa. /Indiana) deflected a pass with seconds to go as IUP gutted out an impressive 77-76 win over Bloomsburg in the quarterfinals of the 2012 NCAA Women's Basketball Atlantic Regional on Friday night at host Edinboro University's McComb Fieldhouse.

The fifth-seeded Crimson Hawks (23-6) advance to play the region's number one seed Edinboro (29-1), which held on for a 69-65 win over eighth-seeded West Chester earlier tonight.

The game was even the entire way as the Crimson Hawks largest lead was just eight points while they trailed Bloomsburg (26-6) by no more than three points, a deficit that came in the first half.

The field goal percentage was nearly identical with IUP converting 43.6 percent (24-of-55) while the Huskies made 43.1 percent (25-of-58) of their shots. The Crimson Hawks also made their tries at the foul line count, going 25-of-33 and outrebounded Bloomsburg 40-32, grabbing 14 offensive boards.

Mathe's defensive play came just after a pair of IUP missed free throws with six seconds left, as she knocked away a pass by Bloomsburg's Maggie Borski to seal the win for the Crimson Hawks.

After a layup by Bloomsburg's Kelsey Gallagher got the Huskies to within two at 75-73 with 29 seconds left, Mathe was fouled and sent to the line where she converted a pair of free throws with 26 seconds to go to put IUP back on top by four at 77-73.

A three-point try by Dana Wieller on Bloomsburg's next possession missed as IUP got to the line with 15 seconds left looking to extend its lead to six. When those two tries missed, the Huskies capitalized as Catherine Noack, who had 22 points in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) semifinals matchup between these two teams, nailed a three to make it a one-point game at 77-76 with eight seconds remaining.

30-second timeouts by both teams followed by a foul by Bloomsburg sent the Crimson Hawks to the line, setting up the final few seconds.

The Crimson Hawks led by as many as eight in the second half when Stoner converted a layup with 6:00 remaining, putting IUP ahead 66-58. Four foul shots followed by a three by Kayla Oxenrider got the cut the deficit to one as the Huskies trailed 66-65 with less than four minutes remaining.

The first half featured back-and-forth scoring as it included 10 lead changes, with the Huskies taking their biggest lead, a 25-22 advantage, with 5:55 left on layup-and-one by Lauren Ellis. The Crimson Hawks would then use a pair of foul shots from Stoner and Talen Watson (Odenton, MD/Arundel) to take back the lead and then took a 38-37 lead into halftime.

The Huskies had four players reach double-figures in scoring, led by Gallagher with 23 points. Wieller finished with 19 while Ellis and Noack each added 10 points. The Huskies were not as effective from three-point range as usual as IUP limited Bloomsburg to just 9-of-28 from beyond the arc.

Stoner finished with her second double-double of the season with 18 points and 13 rebounds, getting her work done in just 26 efficient minutes. She went 6-of-8 from the field and 6-of-7 from the foul line, while seven of her 13 boards came on the offensive end.

Pastorek also finished with 18 points as she went 6-of-6 from the foul line, adding seven rebounds and three assists in 34 minutes. Mathe scored 12 points, also getting it done at the foul line by going 6-of-8. Watson and Leslie Stapleton (Indiana, Pa. /Indiana) each added 11 points apiece, both coming off the bench to help the Crimson Hawks outscore Bloomsburg 29-10 in that department. Stapleton sent 3-of-6 from beyond the arc and added four rebounds while Watson went 4-of-5 from the foul line.

This sets up a semifinals matchup with Edinboro, which swept the season series with the Crimson Hawks this year. Tipoff with the Fighting Scots on Saturday is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. from the McComb Fieldhouse.