Point Park women’s basketball defeated University of Charleston 78-75 in a crucial conference home game on Saturday after Alexis Giles recorded four points in the final five seconds of the game to secure the win.
The thrilling yet foul-filled matchup brought 16 lead changes and 49 visits to the free-throw line.
With under ten seconds remaining, the Golden Eagles held a 75-74 lead thanks to a successful three-point shot from Charleston’s Paris Stokes. Giles answered out of desperation, storming the paint with a successful layup off an inbound pass from Aichata Ballo.
An intentional foul from Charleston sent Giles to the line, going two-for-two and locking in the win with one second on the clock.
Giles led the court in scoring with 26 points, tying Camille Fultz for Point Park’s single-game scoring record this season. Fultz set the record against Glenville State in November.
Giles went 41.7% from the field and 83.3% from the foul line. She is the 10th-highest scorer in the Mountain East Conference, with 13.5 points per game.
The fourth quarter alone included six lead changes and lots of foul trouble.
The back-and-forth battle featured 32 points in the paint and 12 free throw attempts on both ends. The Pioneers outscored the Golden Eagles 25-22, but Charleston took the one-point lead entering the final play of the game.
Giles last-resort layup gave the Pioneers the advantage, allowing Point Park to secure the win after two successful free throws. Another intentional foul sent Fultz to the line, but she missed both shots.
With less than one second remaining, the Golden Eagles failed to get the ball up in time, causing Charleston to fall to the seventh-place spot in the MEC.
The Pioneers went to the free-throw line 29 times, converting on 20 of the attempts. Giles went to the line on 18 of those instances. Charleston did not see the same success from the line, shooting 45% in 20 attempts.
Coach Dave Scarborough said earlier in the season that one of the team’s greatest weaknesses is its turnover troubles. The Pioneers give up an average of 19.1 points off turnovers per game.
Point Park closed the afternoon with only 10 turnovers, lowering the margin of error from its average 19.7 turnovers per game.
The Golden Eagles concluded the first quarter with a 18-18 score after a four-point run to close the scoring deficit. The Pioneers shot 50% from both the field and the three-point line in the period, while Charleston shot only 40% from the field.
Charleston continued its momentum into the second quarter, holding the Pioneers to 35.29% field goal success. Point Park scored 13 points in the quarter to close the half down 36-31.
Giles contributed nine points in the first half to lead the Pioneers into halftime.
The Pioneers answered in the third quarter, scoring 22 points and holding the Golden Eagles to a 31.6% field goal margin. Point Park closed the gap to enter the final period tied 53-53, after Giles went seven for eight from the free-throw line.
The Pioneers outscored the Golden Eagles on all fronts. Point Park shot 50% from deep, 69% from the foul line and 47.4% from the field.
All five Point Park starters finished with double digits in the scoring column. Emma Pavelek followed Giles’ performance with 14 points and three steals, and Ari Bleda recorded 13 points and eight rebounds.
The Pioneers improve to a 8-15 record overall and a 6-11 record in the Mountain East Conference. The team is tied for ninth place in the MEC.
Point Park hits the road on Wednesday to face number-one ranked Fairmont State in Fairmont, W. Va. The Falcons maintain a 20-4 record overall.
The Pioneers tip off at 5:30 p.m. Updates and information are posted on pointparksports.com, and games can be streamed for free on mountaineast.tv.
