WILKES-BARRE – Wilkes overcame a two-point halftime deficit en route to a 73-63 Freedom Conference victory over Back Mountain rivals Misericordia University Saturday at the Marts Center.

The Lady Colonels stand at 9-10 overall and 4-6 in the Freedom while Misericordia drops to 1-20 on the season and 1-9 in the Freedom.

MU led early 6-2 before Wilkes went on a 5-1 run to go up 7-6 five minutes into the game.  Wilkes continued the run to 16-4 with buckets on five straight possessions extending the lead to 18-10 with 12:14 remaining on the clock.  Wilkes maintained an eight point cushion and led by 10 after Elena Stambone (Jessup, PA/Valley View) scored a layup with 5:19 remaining in the first half.  Despite the comfortable advantage the Lady Cougars finished the half on a 16-4 run and led 32-30 at the break.

Misericordia extended their lead to 38-32 at the start of the half before Wilkes scored seven straight points to regain the lead.  Stambone made a three pointer, Cara Basile (Whitehall, PA/Whitehall) two foul shots and Chelsea Brown (Garnet Valley, PA/Garnet Valley) made a layup during the quick spurt.  Two more Stambone layups pushed the Lady Colonels lead to 43-38 with 13:59 left in the game.  MU did not go away easy as they responded with a quick 6-0 run to regain the lead at 44-43. 

With 12:44 on the clock Missy Oertner (Schnecksville, PA/Parkland) nailed a huge three-pointer that would put the Navy and Gold ahead for the remainder of the game.  It was Oertner's second three-pointer of the season, as the sophomore guard provided a spark off the bench scoring seven points and grabbing four rebounds.  Kate Thomas (Schuylkill Haven, PA/Blue Mountain) and Megan Dragon scored points for the Lady Colonels in a crucial 8-0 run that saw Wilkes open up a 52-45 lead.

MU trimmed the lead to three at 52-49 before Wilkes took control with an 8-4 run to go up 60-53 with 5:15 remaining in the game.  Wilkes made good on 5-out-of-6 foul shots sealing up their 4^th Freedom Conference win of the season.

Stambone led Wilkes with 17 points and six boards while Chelsea Brown (Garnet Valley, PA/Garnet Valley) finished with 11 points, five rebounds and four steals.  Chelsea Smelas (Jim Thorpe, PA/Jim Thorpe) scored 10 points, grabbed seven boards and had three steals for the victors.  Wilkes shot 45.3 percent (29-64) from the floor and made 85.7 percent (12-14) of their foul shots.  They forced 24 turnovers and scored 25 points off of the MU turnovers.

Misericordia was led offensively by Jaclyn Hajec who scored 15 points.  Justine Seely posted a double-double with 14 points and 15 rebounds in the loss.  Lauren SMicherko ended the game with 12 points and five rebounds.  As a team MU shot 44.8 percent (26-58) from the floor and 81.8 percent (9-11) from the charity stripe.

Wilkes returns to action on Monday for a non-conference game with Penn State Lehigh.  Tip-off is slated for 7:00 p.m.