NEW HAVEN, Conn. - It was another wild second half for the University of Pennsylvania women's basketball team Friday night with momentum swinging both ways, but yet again, the Quakers found a way, defeating Yale 65-56 to remain atop the Ivy League standings with one game left. The win pushes the Quakers to 21-5 overall and 11-2 in conference play.

PENN NEWS AND NOTES
*Eleah Parker tallied a monstrous performance for the Quakers, reaching a new career high with 29 points, adding in 16 rebounds and four blocks. The double-double is her ninth of the season and 16th of her career, ranking 12th in program history.

*Including 10 makes from the field, Parker finished with nine made free throws, tying her career high.

*Phoebe Sterba chipped in 11 points, including three 3-pointers. The junior has hit at least two threes in 19 games this season and at least three in 11. 

*The Quakers held the Bulldogs to a 32 percent mark from the floor, limiting the league's top scorer in Roxy Barahman to 14 points on 5-of-19 shooting. 

*Rebounds were nearly even, with Yale winning the battle of the boards 46-43. Penn was more opportunistic in its second-chance opportunities however, earning 21 points of missed shots to 11 from Yale.

*Eight players scored for Penn, including seven points and seven rebounds from Princess Aghayere and six points from Kendall Grasela. 

*The Quakers featured a tremendous performance taking care of the ball, tying a season low with six turnovers. Conversely, Penn forced 15 turnovers from Yale, turning those into 15 points. 

*Penn has now won 11 or more Ivy League games for the sixth-straight season. Prior to this run, the Quakers had won 11 or more in the Ancient Eight only twice in program history. 

*Penn's 21-5 mark is its second-best in program history through 26 games. 

*Penn improves to 45-39 all-time against the Bulldogs and have won four straight, sweeping the season series each of the past two years. The Quakers are 11-1 in their last 12 meetings against Yale.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Penn shot out of the gates efficient on offense, getting a quick four points from Grasela before back-to-back 3-pointers from Sterba for a 14-4 lead not even four minutes into the game, with half of the Quakers' 14 coming off of second-chance opportunities.

Four straight from the Bulldogs cut their deficit to 14-8, but a jumper from Ashley Russell gave Penn an eight point cushion at the start of a defensive onslaught to end the quarter.

The Quakers were lock down on defense, holding Yale scoreless for the final 4:37 of the period, with a driving layup from Mia Lakstigala giving Penn an 18-8 edge after one.

Penn was able to keep Yale at arms-length distance throughout the second quarter, despite lapses of scoring itself. Parker was key for the Quakers, either hitting on her first try down low, swishing home jumpers, or kickstarting the fast break with outlet passes off defensive rebounds. An old-fashioned 3-point play helped the Bulldogs crawl within 26-19, but another made jumper from Parker put Penn on top 28-19 at halftime.

The third quarter would belong to the Bulldogs, as slowly but surely, the home team gained momentum. A 4-0 run from Penn (all from Parker) to start the half looked promising for the Quakers, but Yale responded with a 7-0 run, cutting the lead to six.

Energy would again swing back Penn's way, following a jumper from Parker and a corner 3-ball from Kinum, but the Bulldogs wasted no time, answering with a deep three of their own and a bucket and the foul shot from Barahman, putting the lead at 37-32 for the Quakers.

Struggling to find a flow on offense Penn looked to Parker, and her presence led to fouls. Three made free throws from the sophomore helped stem the tide, but a Barahman made 3-pointer plus the foul ignited both the crowd and her team, with Yale ending the quarter on a layup to tie the game at 40-40.

The Bulldog run would swell to 10-0, as Yale scored four straight to open the fourth, gaining its largest lead at 44-40, forcing a Penn timeout. 

Facing adversity, it was Parker again rising to the occasion, first nailing the layup on a feed from Grasela on a second-chance opportunity, before finishing through contact for the old-fashioned 3-point play to vault Penn back on top, 45-40.

A 3-pointer from the wing from Sterba and another smooth jumper at the top of the key from Parker swung the pendulum back Penn's way, as the Quakers responded to their largest deficit of the night with a 10-0 run themselves to go up 50-44 with over six to play.

Yale got offense from the free throw line, scoring four straight, but could not get stops as Aghayere tallied four points of her own in the quarter. A long-range three from Yale's Andrew drew the Bulldogs within 55-51, but Penn was clutch down the stretch from the charity stripe, recording 11 made free throws within the final 2;21. That, combined with staunch defense against the Bulldogs, helped the Quakers grind out another hard-fought Ivy League win. 

WHAT'S NEXT?
The Quakers will round out the regular season with a chance to claim the Ivy League championship on Saturday night, traveling to Providence for a matchup with Brown at 6 p.m.