The Penn Lady Kingsmen basketball team knocked off the No. 10 ranked Northridge Raiders 31-29 on the road in a thrilling defensive battle. The Lady Kingsmen avenged a heart-breaking overtime loss to Northridge a few weeks prior, holding the Raiders to a season-low in points.
While the game was primarily played on the defensive end of the floor, Penn freshman forward Addison Hummel came up big on offense, tallying nearly half of the team total with 15 points. Hummel also grabbed 12 rebounds, making that her fourth double-double of the season.
“I felt like we had a lot of composure, and the energy was really high between all of the players on the court and bench. We also had a lot of trust in each other to make the right plays to end the game on a high note,” Hummel said of the team’s performance.
Penn also saw offensive contributions from junior Macy Little, who scored seven points, and sophomore Alivia Dawson, who added four points.
Not only was this a major win against a highly ranked team, it also snapped the Lady Kingsmen’s five-game losing streak to the Raiders, two of which having come in the Sectional Tournament. Having been two of the strongest teams in the Northern Indiana area for the past several years, a competitive rivalry has formed between Penn and Northridge and it was huge for the Lady Kingsmen to finally come out on top again.
“Northridge is obviously a very skilled team, and no one to take lightly. There has been a sort of rivalry there going way back, and we haven’t come out on top recently. It was definitely a statement game, and I think this win is just what we needed before sectionals. It proves that we can compete with anyone in the state,” explained senior Jessa Troy.
This victory will definitely give the Lady Kingsmen momentum as they look to close out the regular season. The composure and defensive effort Penn exhibited through the entire 32 minutes of play surely proved to everyone across the state that they are a force to be reckoned with heading into the state tournament in a couple of weeks.
The Lady Kingsmen take the floor next on the road in a NIC conference match-up against the Cougars of New Prairie on Friday, Jan. 17, starting at 7:30 ET.
