Box Score

ANNVILLE, Pa. – Senior forward Monica Johnson posted 24 points and 12 rebounds while scoring her 1,000th career point, leading the Lebanon Valley College women’s basketball team to a 65-56 Commonwealth Conference victory over Elizabethtown College at the LVC Gymnasium Saturday afternoon.

With the win, Lebanon Valley (2-3, 1-1 CC) snapped a three-game losing streak and picked up its first conference victory of the season.

Elizabethtown (4-2, 1-1 CC) was led by Erin Walton, who scored 19 points.

Johnson reached her milestone midway through the second half. After scoring only four points in the first period, she netted seven points over the opening 5:15 of the second stanza, bringing her career total to 997 while helping LVC turn a two-point halftime deficit into a seven-point lead (40-33). Then a little over five minutes later, Johnson scored buckets on back-to-back trips down the court, hitting a leaner with 9:38 left before putting back her own missed shot with 8:51 remaining, giving her 1,001 career points and opening up a 10-point lead (51-41) for the Dutchmen.

Lebanon Valley maintained a least a seven-point advantage the rest of the way. Walton made it 61-54 following a lay-up with 1:43 left, but the Blue Jays made just 1 of 6 field goals the rest of the way while LVC went 4-for-10 at the free-throw line down the stretch.

Johnson is Lebanon Valley’s seventh 1,000-point scorer.

Junior guard Donna Geiger and sophomore guard Amie Bickert added 10 points apiece for LVC while junior guard Jenna Gambino notched six points and seven rebounds. Bickert also handed out four assists.

Audrey Hitz contributed 16 points and nine rebounds for E-town while Megan Quinn added 11 points off the bench.

Lebanon Valley was in a groove early, making its first five field goal attempts. A three-pointer from Bickert gave LVC an 11-2 lead just over four minutes into the contest.

The Blue Jays began to chip away, however, and a 9-0 run gave E-town a 20-18 lead with 5:31 on the clock. An Amanda Reid put-back just before the buzzer put the Jays on top 28-26 at the half.

Lebanon Valley shot 47.8% from the floor for the game, its best mark since its season-opening win over Hood College. The Dutchmen got to the foul line 17 more times than E-town, as LVC went 16-for-26 at the charity stripe while the Jays were 6-for-9.

The Dutchmen pick up their schedule on Monday, when they visit Rowan University at 7 p.m. in a non-conference tilt.

[Photo - Senior Monica Johnson, who reached 1,000 career points in Lebanon Valley's 65-56 win over Elizabethtown on Saturday]

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