Box Score
Agnese Aramina poured in a game-high 21 points and grabbed five rebounds to guide the Lady Cat basketball team to a 75-61 victory over Winston-Salem State (NC) University in Saturday's First Round of the Shepherd (WV) University Classic.
 
Jasmine Harper scored a dozen points and pulled down 10 rebounds to move to within 13 points of become the 36^th Lady Cat 1,000-point scorer.
 
Brionna Pate's lay-up gave Winston-Salem State an early 10-7 first quarter lead, but the Lady Cats answered with a quick 10-0 run to build a seven-point lead of their own.  Harper's jumper in the paint knotted it at 10 before a 3-pointer from Aramina, followed by a Laurel O'Barto basket made it 17-10 1:15 later.
 
The Rams were able to narrow it to 19-16 on Kandace Tate's jumper as the first quarter expired.
 
Winston-Salem State held the momentum and outscored Pitt-Johnstown by three in the second quarter to knot it at 31 going into the halftime break.
 
However, the Lady Cats scored the first seven points of the third quarter, including another 3-pointer from Aramina to rebuild the lead to 38-31.
 
Pitt-Johnstown never gave up the lead again.  Oliva Rizzo's 3-pointer extended it to eight, before Olivia McCabe's lay-up and a bucket from Aramina gave Pitt-Johnstown a 50-39 advantage with 41 seconds remaining in the third quarter.
 
The Rams tried to get back in it on several occasions, but the Lady Cats always had an answer.  A 3-pointer from Jasmine Carter midway through the fourth quarter cut it to 57-54, but Ana Hollen's lay-up with 3:34 to play pushed it back out to 11 at 66-55.
 
Pitt-Johnstown got the lead out to as many as 15 on Araminia's 3-pointer with just under a minute left and went on to the 14-point victory.
 
Along with Aramina, who was also 4-6 from 3-point range, and Harper, McCabe had 13 points and four rebounds, and Hollen tallied 10 points, five rebounds, and five assists in her collegiate debut.  Nicole Corcoran, Victoria Moreland, and O'Barto all finished with five points apiece for the Lady Cats.
 
Harper has 987 career points and is ranked 18^th on the Pitt-Johnstown All-time Rebounding List with 601 rebounds.
 
Pitt-Johnstown ended the day shooting 43.8% (28-64) from the field, 7-27 from 3-point range, and 12-20 from the charity stripe.  Winston-Salem State was held to just 40.0% (23-57) shooting, including just 2-10 from behind the 3-point line.  The Rams were also 13-19 from the free-throw line.
 
Tate led the way for the Rams with 17 points and eight rebounds, while Awa Kalmstrom collected eight points in a losing cause.
 
The Lady Cats finish the Shepherd Tournament against Virginia Union on Sunday at noon, before making their 2015-16 home debut and opening the PSAC schedule against California University (PA), the defending NCAA Division II National Champions, on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. in the Sports Center.