#5 Penn State York Opens PSUAC Playoffs at #4 Schuylkill
In the playoffs for the first time in four years, York looks to avenge January loss
In the Pennsylvania State University Athletic Conference (PSUAC) Playoffs for the first time in four years, #5 Penn State York Women's Basketball (13–10, 9–5) opens at #4 Penn State Schuylkill (16–6, 10–4) Wednesday, Feb. 14. Coach Terri Van Slyke's team comes into the playoffs on a five-game winning streak and looks to ride that momentum Wednesday evening.
Opening tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. in a rematch from almost exactly a month ago, when Schuylkill downed York 61–49 in Schuylkill Haven, Pa. In that January game, York had an off-shooting night and was particularly cold from the foul line, hitting just 8–24 free throws.
Despite those struggles, York used great defense and a run in the third quarter to briefly grab the lead after trailing for much of the game. Schuylkill got hot again in the fourth quarter and made their free throws to close out the game.
Penn State York's leading scorer Emily Colon went down with a torn ACL a couple of weeks ago and is out for the season. The senior from Lancaster, Pennsylvania (Lancaster Catholic) led the team with 15.1 points per game, and averaged 7.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.4 steals per game. Colon was named the PSUAC Player of the Week in mid-January.
Freshman Corina Rivera (Lancaster, Pennsylvania / Lancaster Catholic) has picked up the scoring slack since Colon's injury, averaging 17.8 points per game over the last five games. On the season, she's averaged 11.7 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 2.1 steals per game.
Senior Karra Thomason (New Oxford, Pennsylvania / Bermudian Springs) is Penn State York's force in the middle, averaging 8.9 points and 9.5 rebounds per game. Charizma Johnson (York, Pennsylvania / West York) averages 10.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.6 steals per game, while Sky Warner (Brogue, Pennsylvania / Red Lion) has averaged 9.6 points per game in a reserve role.
The winner of Wednesday's opening round matchup will advance to take on #1 seed Penn State Brandywine in Saturday's semifinal in Media, Pennsylvania.