Ball State University Athletics
Ball State University
(4-5)
Pittsburgh
(7-3)
WBB Loses 59-47 On The Road To Pitt
December 19, 2014 | Women's Basketball
PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The Ball State women's basketball team fell to 4-5 on the season after losing 59-47 at Pitt, a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference, Thursday night in Petersen Events Center.
Pitt opened the second half with a 10-5 run to take its largest lead of the ball game, 40-24, with 14:06 on the clock, but Ball State would then answer with a 21-12 scoring spurt over the next 10 minutes to cut the Panthers lead to seven (52-45) with 3:07 to play. Renee Bennett began the Cardinals run after two free throws and a basket from behind the arc, along with help from Candyce Ussery, Nathalie Fontaine, Calyn Hosea, Frannie Frazier and Jill Morrison. But Ball State's efforts were too late as the Panthers would go back up by 10 (57-47) with 39.7 seconds left securing the win for Pitt.
Ball State took the early 5-2 lead over Pitt in the opening minutes of the ball game after baskets from Shelby Merder and Jill Morrison. After that, the half saw four ties and five lead changes with Ball State leading 14-13 at the 10:06 mark. The contest was knotted 18-18 with 5:05 on the clock but the Panthers closed out the half with a 12-1 run to take an 11-point (30-19) advantage over the Cardinals at intermission.
Ball State was led by the 15 points of Fontaine, who also added six rebounds. Bennett scored seven points while teammate Hosea pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. Justice and Morrison each had six points on the night.
For the game, Ball State shot 38.3 percent from the field while holding Pitt to a 35.0 shooting percentage. The Cardinals were out-rebounded 41-to-32, but scored more points in the paint than the Panthers 26-to-22.
The Ball State women's basketball team continues its two-game road trip Sunday when it plays at Western Kentucky at 2 p.m. in E.A. Diddle Arena.
