Sizzlin’ Bullets Shoot Down Garnet
GETTYSBURG, Pa. - Four Bullet players scored in double-figures as the home-standing Gettysburg Bullets (14-9, 11-5 CC) shot 50.8% to defeat Swarthmore 76-41 in Centennial Conference women's basketball action Saturday afternoon at Bream Gymnasium. Senior forward Katie Reilly tallied a career-high 22 points while freshman Allie Dreschler (14 points), Nicole Dobranski (12 points) and Courtney Fields (10 points) all hit double-digits as Gettysburg hit a season-high for points to keep pace in the race for a Centennial Conference playoff spot.
Swarthmore junior forward Karen Berk extended her double-figure scoring streak to 25 games, leading the Garnet with 10 points and nine rebounds. Melissa Grigsby '09 and Laura Popovics '08 added six points apiece for Swarthmore.
The Bullets started the afternoon on fire, hitting seven of their first 11 shots (including three triples) to take a 18-4 lead with 15:00 left in the first half. Drechsler had the hot-hand, sinking two triples and a lay-up for eight quick points.
Swarthmore responded with a 7-2 run, capped by Berk's lay-up and free throw at 11:52, to get within 20-10 at the 11:52 mark.
Gettysburg continued to convert shots, holding a 28-17 lead with 6:25 left in the first half. The Bullets quickly took command of the game with a 16-0 run to end the half, finished off by a triple from sophomore forward Emily Harwood with 23 seconds left.
The Bullets shot 56.3% and forced 17 Garnet turnovers in the first half to hold a 44-17 lead at the intermission. Dreschler and Fields led Gettysburg with 10 points apiece while Berk paced Swarthmore with eight points.
Gettysburg continued to pour in points, tallying the first eight markers of the second half to push out to a 52-17 lead. Swarthmore freshman guard Lisa Schumacher scored on a drive at 17:51 to end the run. Two free throws by junior forward Kristen Traband and a three-pointer by Popovics brought the visitors within 54-24 at 14:23.
The Bullets kept the offense rolling, using six points from Reilly on the way to an 8-0 run and their largest lead of the night, 62-24, at the 12:39 mark.
Reilly made it a memorable Senior Day, shooting 11 of 17 from the floor to go along with a team-best eight rebounds and four steals. Dreschler hit six of her nine attempts while tying with Sam Pyzik for a team-high six assists. Overall, Gettysburg handed out 26 assists on 33 field goals and forced 29 Swarthmore turnovers (the Bullets picked up 17 steals).
Swarthmore returns home on Tuesday, Feb. 13 for a 7:00 p.m. game with Washington. It is the final home game of the season for the Garnet (4-18, 1-15 CC) and the team will honor seniors Jess Fuhr and Sam Graffeo with a pre-game ceremony.