Wolfpack pushes lady cagers out

By DAMIAN DOBROSIELSKI
Collegian Sports Writer

Tammy Gibson had struggled all day.

In 33 minutes on the court, she had taken just four shots and had missed all of them.

Yet with eight seconds remaining in the game and the score tied at 74, the North Carolina State senior found the ball in her hands underneath the Penn State basket.

The 5-foot-8 guard then dribbled the length of the court -- through a porous Lady Lion defense -- and scored on a layup with 2.4 ticks left on the clock. The bucket gave the seventh-seeded Wolfpack a dramatic 76-74 win over No. 2 Penn State yesterday in the second-round of the NCAA women's basketball tournament in Rec Hall.

"The shot was by far my best shot all year," Gibson said. "I just couldn't believe it."

Neither could the Lady Lion players, who left the court in tears -- once again deprived of the opportunity to reach the Final Four.

"Down the wire it was anybody's game," Wolfpack Coach Kay Yow said. "We expected a real battle. We're very fortunate, to say the least, to come out with the win."

N.C. State entered yesterday's game riding a wave of emotion. On Friday, the Wolfpack bounced Marquette from the tournament, staging a 77-62 triumph.

Despite a sluggish start against the Lady Lions, Yow's squad led 38-28 at the intermission.

Penn State, which beat Jackson State 75-62 in Friday's opening-round, shot an abysmal 28.2 percent in the first half against the Wolfpack.

N.C. State continued its dominance of the Lady Lions when play resumed.

With 10 minutes, 30 seconds left in the game, Penn State guard Carla Coleman attempted to throw a cross-court pass, but it was picked-off by Wolfpack guard Umeki Webb. Webb scored on the turnover, giving her team its largest lead of the contest, 61-47.

But then -- behind a strong defensive effort -- the Lady Lions whittled away at the N.C. State lead. And the 5,578 fans in Rec Hall, who had been a non-factor for much of the game, came alive.

"The crowd was their sixth man," Yow said. "We became rattled."

And with 7:10 left in the second stanza, Penn State forged ahead, 62-61, as senior Missy Masley converted a pair of foul shots.

But the Lady Lions couldn't deliver the knock-out blow, and the Wolfpack managed to stay close in the game's closing minutes.

"We hoped that we would be in it going down the stretch," Yow said. "They took us out of it for a time there and then we got our composure back."

With 1:18 left on the clock, N.C. State senior Kolleen Kreul --who scored 18 points in the game --popped a three-pointer from the top of the arc, tying the score at 72.

"That wasn't the shot that won it for them," Penn State Coach Rene Portland said. "But that was the shot that broke our backs."

After the teams traded baskets, Gibson converted her first field-goal of the game to secure the upset.

"We just didn't play any defense in the last eight seconds," Portland said.

The Lady Lions were paced by Angie Potthoff and Masley, who scored 21 and 20 points, respectively. In a starting role, senior Shelby Thayer tallied 10 points, two assists and two steals.

For the Wolfpack, Webb ended the game with 17 points, while center Chasity Melvin scored 16 points and recorded nine rebounds.