Mia Oterson's 3-pointer with 2:43 to play put the Mountain Cats back into the lead for good and helped the Pitt-Johnstown women's basketball team tip-off the 2019-20 season with a 72-68 win over Virginia State in Friday's First Round of the Shepherd University Conference Crossover in Shepherdstown, W.Va.
 
Alli McGrath had a game-high 20 points and 11 rebounds, and Gabrielle Smith added 18 points to pace four Pitt-Johnstown players who scored in double figures.
 
Pitt-Johnstown got off to a quick start and climbed out to an 8-0 first quarter lead on baskets from Smith and McGrath.  Autumn Hopson's layup got Virginia State back to within two at 8-6, but the Mountain Cats outscored the Trojans 14-4 over the final six minutes to take a 22-10 lead on Smith's basket in the paint.
 
The Trojans got back in it with an 8-1 spurt over the first three minutes of the second quarter, capped by Chiqueria Cook's bucket, before a pair of Shalyn Washington free-throws at 5:37 made it 26-23.  The Mountain Cats scored the next eight to rebuild the lead to 34-23 on an Olivia Fasick layup, but Virginia State answered with baskets from Washington and Brianna Jones in the final 30 seconds to make it 34-27 at the half.
 
Virginia State held the momentum and stretched its run to 10-0 to narrow the gap 34-33 on Cook's basket with 7:18 left in the third quarter, but 3-pointers from Fasick and McGrath, followed by two Maddie Shanahan free-throws at 3:14, got the Mountain Cat's advantage back out to 49-40.  The Trojans were able to get to within three at 53-50 entering the fourth quarter on Jones' late basket.
 
Natalie Leaks' layup to begin the quarter made it a one-point game, before Jones' jumper knotted it at 56 with 7:43 left.  The Trojans then got a short jumper from Hopkins at 6:10 to take their first lead of the game at 61-59.  Smith's conventional 3-point play at 4:10 evened it at 63 and Oterson's 3-pointer less than a minute later put Pitt-Johnstown back on top 68-66.  The Mountain Cats never trailed again and held off the Trojans by four.
 
Along with McGrath's 20 points and Smith's 18 points, the Mountain Cat also got 12 points and 11 rebounds from Shanahan and 10 points from Oterson.  Fasick added seven points, five assists, and five steals in her collegiate debut.
 
Pitt-Johnstown shot 42.3% (22-52) from the field and 5-25 from 3-point range, but got the job done at the free-throw line, connecting on 23 of 29.  Virginia State was held to just 32.4% (24-74) shooting, including just 5-26 from behind the 3-point line.  The Trojans were 15-23 from the charity stripe.
 
Hopson's 15 points and five rebounds, and Jones' 10 points and five rebounds led the way for Virginia State.
 
Pitt-Johnstown concludes the Shepherd (WV) Conference Crossover against Fayetteville State on Saturday at 1 p.m., before traveling to a non-conference game at Alderson-Broaddus on Wednesday. Pitt-Johnstown will tip-off its home schedule with a non-conference game against Wheeling (WV) University on November 16 at 1 p.m. in the Sports Center.