By Krista Hutz
Sports Editor
hutzkm@sas.upenn.edu
In a season where two players have done the lions' share of scoring, it looks like Pat Knapp's beleaguered Quakers are finally getting some help.
In its 61-58 defeat of Manhattan (4-13) last night, senior forward Ashley Gray contributed her second double-digit performance in her three games since returning to the team.
"The third double-figure scorer - that's what we needed," Knapp said. "Monica [Naltner] and Joey [Rhoads] did everything they could for 'X' amount of games. It's great that [Gray] is adding to the scoring column."
Down 27-22 at the half and then as many as 11 during the second, the Quakers (6-9, 1-1 Ivy) had to fight for the win.
However, the major fault of both teams was the number of turnovers committed - each squad had 23 on the night.
"My recollection of the game was that we turned the ball over way too much," Knapp said. "There were maybe four in a row where we turned it over."
Although Lauren Pears was good for 11 points, her five turnovers - part of the 14 total committed by the guards - did not help her team's cause.
Naltner and Rhoads, the Quakers' leading scorers, came into the game averaging over 17 points each, yet they were held to six and four points, respectively, in the first half.
"We didn't get into the flow for a while," Naltner said. "We weren't making crisp enough passes."
The Lady Jaspers transitioned between a 2-3 zone and a man defense, something Naltner thought threw Penn off.
"In the zone, the middle was open," Naltner said. "We didn't pass well and weren't getting it in the middle . We talked about that at halftime and then worked the zone pretty well."
The Quakers would find their groove midway through the second half, when a Gray layup began a 12-0 run.
Back-to-back threes by Naltner and Rhoads capped off Penn's run and established a 43-42 lead with just under eight minutes to play.
"It's a tough one," Manhattan coach Myndi Hill said in a post-game interview. "You can't leave them open, because they'll hit them. . They nail them. If you give them three feet, they're going to hit them."
It would not be smooth sailing from there, though, as Penn would fall behind once more before taking a two-point lead with eight seconds left.
Rhoads missed the second of her two free throws, putting the Penn lead at three. Manhattan's Caitlin Flood grabbed the rebound and the Lady Jaspers had a chance to tie the game.
Flood drove down the court, but failed to get a shot off before time expired.
"It was poor communication," Hill said of the last seconds. "It was probably my fault."
The result wasn't unfamiliar, though, for the Lady Jaspers, who were playing in their last nonconference game of the season. Manhattan is currently on a nine-game losing streak, a school record.
But in their sixth win of the season, the Red and Blue have already eclipsed their total from last season.
"It's not a tremendous milestone at all, it's a journey and we still have more of the journey," Knapp said. "We don't have a number to win, just a better team and I think it will mean more wins."
The Quakers' next opportunity will come during their last nonconference game against St. Joseph's.
