Kent State University
5-1,0-0MAC
Penn State
4-3,0-0Big Ten
Flashes Defeat Penn State in Gulf Coast Showcase Third-Place Game
11/28/2021 9:20:00 PM | Women's Basketball
ESTERO, Fla. — Six players scored at least nine points as Kent State posted an 81-74 victory over Penn State on Sunday evening to capture third place at the Gulf Coast Showcase.
After nearly 11 years between wins against Power 5 opponents, the Golden Flashes (5-1) earned their second such win in a three-day span after previously beating No. 19 UCLA on Friday.
Senior Lindsey Thall, who became the 23rd member of Kent State's 1,000-point club on a free throw late in the third quarter, and junior Nila Blackford registered double-doubles in the victory. Thall had 16 points and 10 rebounds, while Blackford finished with 13 points and 14 rebounds. The frontcourt duo grabbed more boards than the entire Nittany Lions roster to lead the Flashes to a dominant 46-23 rebounding advantage.
"This group's tough," said head coach Todd Starkey. "We didn't feel good about yesterday's performance and knew we are better than that. I don't know whether we just had a little bit of malaise over us from the UCLA win, but we didn't come out and play as tough as we had before. And we knew we really wanted to be consistent and prove it. This group has come down here and shown people what we are about. I'm really proud of them."
A high level of intensity on the defensive end that held the Nittany Lions to just 3-of-15 shooting in the opening period allowed Kent State to settle in and make shots. Freshman Bridget Dunn stroked a three-point shot at the 2:32 mark that sparked a 9-2 run to build an 18-8 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Penn State found its shooting rhythm in the second quarter and made seven of its first 11 shots to even the score at 28-28 with 3:14 remaining before halftime. The Flashes responded with layups from junior Katie Shumate and Blackford to go back ahead by four, but the Nittany Lions converted a pair of free throws to make it 32-30 heading into the locker room.
The third period featured four lead changes, the last coming when sophomore Casey Santoro sank two free throws to put Kent State ahead 45-44. On the Flashes' final possession of the quarter, senior Hannah Young chased down a blocked shot attempt by a teammate and banked in a shot with her toe on the three-point arc to beat the shot clock buzzer and make it 53-49.
Kent State scored on its first four possessions to start the fourth period with a 10-2 run and extend the lead to 12 points with 6:49 to play. Penn State continued to battle and got within 74-70 after draining three consecutive triples with 1:51 left on the clock. Santoro answered with a spinning layup to push the lead back top six, and the Flashes shot 5-of-6 at the foul line to close it out.
Shumate led the way with 17 points. Santoro was right behind with 15 points. Dunn scored all of her 10 points over 11 minutes in the first half. Young added nine points and season-best eight rebounds.
The Flashes will travel to St. Bonaventure on Friday, Dec. 3 before returning to the M.A.C. Center for the final four games of 2021.
