XML Box Score Elizabethtown, PA - The Falcons took a 26-20 halftime lead and stretched it to as many as 19 points in the second half to beat the No. 2 Elizabethtown College Blue Jays 64-51 Wednesday evening. The Blue Jays had a tough time handling Messiah's fast paced play and got into foul trouble early in both halves. The Falcons took advantage and shot 73.1% from the free throw line throughout the game.
Chelsea Danel led the Falcons with 16 points, shooting 44.4% from the field and 80% on free throws.
Taylor Miller (12 pts.),
Katelyn Vanderhoff (10 pts.), and
Sienna Wisse (8 pts.) were clutch from behind the three-point arc. Miller was 1-2, Vanderhoff 2-3, and Wisse 2-2.
Gillian Glackin controlled the boards with 12 rebounds and added 9 points.
"I'm thrilled with the way we played tonight and am very excited to move on to Saturday," head coach
Mike Miller said. "We're exactly where we want to be at this point in the season."
After falling behind by two in the opening minutes, the Falcons turned back-to-back Blue Jay turnovers into five points to take a three-point lead. A lead they never relinquished.
Gillian Glackin played a huge role in both plays, bringing in two offensive rebounds - of her game-high 12 rebounds - to extend Messiah's possessions.
Taylor Miller drained a three at the 15:14 mark to give the Falcons their largest lead in the early stages of the half (12-6), yet Messiah struggled to score in the next three and a half minutes. In fact, both teams were without a bucket until the 11:51 mark when Elizabethtown's Krissy Pennell used a Falcon turnover to break the scoring drought and pull within two (12-10).
In that same time frame, the Blue Jays were a bit overzealous on defense and committed five team fouls. With 13:29 left in the half, Elizabethtown's picked up three different fouls in the same Messiah possession. The Blue Jays' leading scorer, Rachel Forjan, was one of the culprits and made her way to the bench after her second personal foul. Forjan ended up playing only seven minutes in the half and scored just six total points; her second lowest offensive contribution of the season.
Glackin ended the Falcons' scoring drought at 11:04 when she made two free throws – E-town committed their sixth team foul - to hold the 14-10 advantage. Moments later, Glackin picked up her second foul and headed to the bench for the remainder of the half.
With their leading rebounder off the court, the Falcons were at a slight disadvantage in the rebounding department. The Blue Jays out-rebounded Messiah 9-5 in the final nine minutes, but fortunately managed to add only eight points.
At the 2:34 mark, Vanderhoff and Wisse took control of the Falcons' rebounding efforts. Both players grabbed an offensive board that eventually led to two points from
Taylor Miller for the 26-20 lead.
"Sienna [Wisse] came off the bench and hit some big shots tonight," Coach Miller said. "She, Hannah [Nichols], and Katelyn [Vanderhoff] were impact players for us and really stepped up when needed."
In the second half, the Falcons poured it on right out of the gate and went on two 8-0 runs to pull ahead by 12 (34-22) and 19 (46-27). Elizabethtown seemed to become more and more frantic as the Falcons continued to accumulate points, resulting in seven team fouls with 12:21 to play.
For the remainder of the game, Messiah was in the bonus. For a team that is second in the Commonwealth in free throw percentage (72.7%), this scenario was certainly a gift. The Falcons ended up shooting 68.8% (11-16) from the charity stripe during this time frame; a statistic that directly impacted the outcome of the game.
Immediately following Glackin's two free throws, the Blue Jays turned the ball over which gave Wisse the opportunity to drain a three; giving the Falcons their largest lead of the game – 19 points (46-27).
After an Elizabethtown time out, the Blue Jays posted six unanswered points and their full-court pressure resulted in a 10-second violation by the Falcons. Some momentum was beginning to brew for the Blue Jays until Taylor Alwine picked up her fourth and fifth personal fouls; both of which were offensive fouls.
Wisse added to Elizabethtown's pain when she drained her second triple of the night, pushing the Falcons' lead back to 19 points (53-34) with 6:19 to play.
Much credit goes to the Blue Jays, though, because they continued to fight and chip away at their deficit. Elizabethtown scored seven unanswered points in the next four minutes to draw within 12. Senior Taylor Kreider seemed to take control of her team and the game, score 12 of their final 17 points.
Despite their gumption, fouls would be the Blue Jays' downfall. In the final three minutes of play, Elizabethtown was called for six more fouls, resulting in nine points for Messiah.
On the night, the Falcons were 19-26 (73.1%) for free throws and shot a collective 41.7% from the field. They forced 18 Elizabethtown turnovers of which they turned into 25 points, compared to the Blue Jays' 11 points off of Messiah's 17 turnovers.
Taylor Krieder ended her career as a Blue Jay with a game-high 22 points and 11 rebounds. Freshman Krissy Pennell contributed a career-high 10 points and added 5 rebounds. She also had four steals.
With the 64-51 semifinal win, Messiah now moves on to Saturday's Commonwealth Championship where they'll face No. 1 Lebanon Valley College. The Dutchmen earned the other spot in the championship after beating No. 4 Stevenson University 70-60.
This will be the sixth time that the Dutchmen and the Falcons have met in the Championship game. The Falcons lead the series 3-2, yet Lebanon Valley is the reigning Commonwealth Champion and is hoping for their fourth straight title.
When asked about the historic rivalry Coach Miller responded, "We are excited to play LVC once again for the Championship, but it will be extremely tough going into their gym and trying to beat a team that has beaten us twice during the regular season."
The Championship game will begin at 3 p.m. in the LVC Gymnasium. Go Falcons!
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