ERIE, PA – Behind yet another double-double by senior Lindsay Stamp (Erie, Pa. /Mercyhurst Prep), the fifth-ranked IUP women's basketball team cruised to a 74-53 victory at Gannon on Saturday night.
 
Stamp finished the night with 25 points and 13 rebounds – her eighth double-double of the season - as the Crimson Hawks easily outshot and outrebounded Gannon at the Hammermill Center.
 
The win put some distance between them and the Golden Knights in the highly contested Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division. IUP improved to 19-2 overall and 15-2 in the conference, good for second in the division, and is now one-and-a-half games in front of the Golden Knights, who are 15-6 and 14-4.
 
Stamp started the night slow, going 0-for-3 from the field as Gannon held a 14-11 lead with just under 12 minutes to play in the first half.
 
The Crimson Hawks responded with a three-pointer by Marina Wareham (New Wilmington, Pa. /Kennedy Catholic), which jumpstarted a 16-2 IUP run to make it a 27-16 game with 5:17 to go in the half. Four Crimson Hawks scored on the run, which lasted 5:19, including Stamp with six points and Leslie Stapleton (Indiana, Pa. /Indiana) with five.
 
The IUP lead stretched to 15 points with a fastbreak layup by Stamp with under a minute to play before the Crimson Hawks went into the break with a 39-26 halftime lead.
 
The Crimson Hawks were on fire to start the second half, scoring nine quick points with help from Stamp and Marta Mathe to take an 18-point lead at 46-28. They then went on an 11-4 scoring binge over a four minute period to break the game even more wide open, taking a 57-32 lead with 13 minutes to play.
 
From there, the Crimson Hawks kept Gannon at arm's reach the remainder of the way, leading by as many as 27 and never letting the Golden Knights get any closer than 21 in the blowout win.  
 
The victory came after the Crimson Hawks were on the other end of a blowout game, falling to California (PA) 76-45 at home on Wednesday. IUP has now swept the season series from Gannon for the first time since the 2010-11 season.
 
IUP shot 43 percent from the field – included 10-of-22 from three-point range – while Gannon converted just 35 percent of its total shots. The Crimson Hawks also grabbed 41 rebounds to Gannon's 37 and turned the ball over just eight times all night.
 
Stamp finished 9-of-18 from the field, including 3-of-6 from three-point range. She also handed out three assists. Mathe added 15 points for IUP, going 5-of-7 from three-point range, while grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out four assists.
 
Morgan Neighbors was the only Gannon player to reach double-figures in scoring, finishing with 10 points. IUP held All-PSAC West performer Nettie Blake to just seven points and seven rebounds.
 
The Crimson Hawks will head to Erie again next Wednesday as they face Mercyhurst (8-16, 5-13). Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m.