PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The Frostburg State Women's Basketball team used a dominant second half defensive performance to defeat Point Park 60-44 on Saturday.
 
FSU struggled offensively early on, as a missed shot and back-to-back turnovers put them down 4-0 over the first two minutes. Freshman Ella Sabatos got the Bobcats on the board off a feed by classmate Zaria Gaskins, who also provided an assist to junior Jenna Muha to tie the game up. PPU responded with a three-pointer, as it would be another three minutes before another basket was scored, with Gaskins knocking in a triple of her own following a steal. The sides then traded buckets, with Muha answering a Pioneer lay-in with a long two, though it would be Point Park to hold the lead heading to the second, scoring with a minute left for an 11-9 score.
 
In the first minute of the second quarter, sophomore Syndey Snyder pulled down an offensive rebound and was able to knock down a shot from range, though PPU answered right back again to stay ahead by two. Frostburg held firm defensively for the next two minutes, as sophomore Ayla Hileman hit a trey before Muha knocked down a pair at the charity stripe and Nelson got an easy layup to surge ahead 19-14. Out of a Pioneer timeout, the hosts were able to get a layup off a steal, as Muha got a putback to go and the sides traded free throws, with Hileman going perfect to stay ahead by five. Point Park answered with back-to-back baskets before Muha muscled her way into the paint for a score and a 25-22 lead. Point Park then locked in defensively over a two-minute stretch, getting a layup and another three to regain a slight two-point advantage. FSU was able to stabilize things at the end of the half, keeping PPU off the board while Spinelli converted at the line and sophomore Laekyn Flinn hit a big trey off a Sabatos assist to sneak ahead 30-27.
 
Coming out of the break, the Pioneers immediately tied things up on a three, with Hileman responding on a pull-up jumper and Gaskins driving the lane after another Point Park bucket to stay up by two. After a jumper at the 6:45 mark, PPU wouldn't score again for four minutes, as the Bobcats were able to go on a scoring run. Hileman kicked things off with a driving layup, then Gaskins split a pair of freebies and Flinn and Hileman knocked down back-to-back shots from behind the arc to move ahead 43-34. The Pioneers finally broke their drought with a three, however Frostburg quickly hit back through Muha and Sabatos getting to the rim to lead 47-37 at the end of the period.
 
The final frame started slow for both teams, as neither side scored through the first minute and a half, with Spinelli finally breaking through on back-to-back baskets to push the lead up to 14. Point Park tried to get back into things on a steal and score, but Spinelli kept firing on a mid-range jumper. Hileman kept the defensive pressure up with a steal that eventually led to a Sabatos putback, then Spinelli was found by Hileman for a layup and Flinn went one-for-two at the line to push the advantage up to 58-41. The final three minutes featured little in the way of scoring, as the Pioneers had one free throw and a made basket, while freshman Raegan Ogle made a tough bucket to end the game with the 60-44 victory.
 
The 44 points allowed were the fewest by FSU since 2022 in a win over Clarion. Hileman (12), Muha (12), and Spinelli (10) all reached double-digit scoring, with the latter adding a game-high 12 rebounds and the former dished out a team-high three assists.
 
With the win, Frostburg improves to 9-7, while Point Park drops to 3-11. The Bobcats will return home on Wednesday, January 21 against West Virginia Wesleyan at 5:30 p.m. Information and updates will be posted to frostburgsports.com.