Stevens and Fisher Claim Victory
Stevens 77, William Paterson 72
The Stevens Institute of Technology women's basketball team outlasted William Paterson University, 77-72, on Saturday in Hoboken. With the victory, Stevens improves to 5-1 on the season, while William Paterson falls to 2-4.
The Ducks jumped out to a 9-0 lead over the first 2:07 of the contest, but William Paterson turned up its defense and forced six Stevens turnovers in the next 3:10 to pull within one point at 11-10. Stevens committed 19 turnovers in the first half and went into the break down by just one point at 37-36.
Senior
Molly Spadaro netted five of her 11 points on the afternoon in the opening 9-0 run, while classmate
Avis Benjamin tallied the other four points en route to a double-double performance with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Benjamin went 7-for-12 from the field, while Spadaro shot 5-for-11 to go along with five boards.
William Paterson captured its first advantage in the game after Maya Harris made a layup to put the Pioneers ahead by two points, 13-11, with 11:59 left in the first half. After Benjamin knotted the score on the next possession, the Pioneers regained the lead on a pair of free throws their next trip down the floor.
Over the final 11:18 of the half, there were five ties and four lead changes with William Paterson holding the largest lead of five points on two separate occasions, 32-27 and 37-32.
Of the 36 points Stevens scored in the first half, Benjamin tallied 10, Spardaro recorded seven, sophomore
Miranda Ripken chipped in seven and freshman
Hannah Brophy also poured in seven points (nine in the game).
As the second half got underway, Benjamin scored the first basket of the half to put Stevens back in front, 38-37, and Spadaro finished off a fast break just a few seconds later to give the Ducks a three point edge, 40-37, with 17:44 remaining.
A three-point play from Kristine Jackiewicz dead locked the contest at 40-40 with 17:38 left which would jumpstart a 16-9 run for the Pioneers over a 7:30 span. William Paterson remained in control of the game up until the 14th tie in the affair with 5:15 on the clock at 64-64.
After the 64-64 tie, Stevens capitalized at the free throw line and made 11 of its 14 attempts, while the Pioneers could only score eight points.
Ripken swished seven freebies in eight tries to account for her game-high 22 points. She went 10-for-12 at the line overall and was 6-of-11 from the floor.
Stevens shot 26-for-66 from the field (39.4 percent) and was 21-for-31 from the line. William Paterson went 26-for-80 overall (32.5 percent) and struggled from long range, going just 7-for-36 (19.4 percent). The Pioneers also had a rough afternoon at the charity stripe, shooting just 50 percent (13-for-26).
Both teams pulled down 55 rebounds. William Paterson pulled down 28 on the offensive end, while Stevens grabbed 20.
St. John Fisher 84, John Jay 50
The St. John Fisher College women's basketball program won its fourth straight game, as the Cardinals cruised to an 84-50 win over John Jay College on Saturday evening in the opening round of the Woodcliff Hotel and Spa Invitational.
With the win, Fisher (4-1) advances to Sunday's championship game and will play Union College 2 p.m. The Dutchwomen defeated Ramapo College 69-61 earlier in the day.
Fisher's
Mary Kate Cusack scored all 19 of her points in the first half, connecting on five 3-pointers, as Fisher jumped out to a 45-24 lead at the break.
The Cardinals kept the momentum going in the second half as 12 of 16 players for Fisher contributed in the scoring column.
Cusack led all scorers with 19 points. The sophomore also tallied a team-high five steals.
Camaryn Buckner tallied 11 points, eight rebounds and three steals, while
Sydney Bloomstein also scored 11 points.
Brooke Seavitt came off the bench and scored eight points, while freshman
Elyssa Hapanowicz posted seven points, three steals and three assists (all
career-highs).
Portia Velasco and
Lauren Allen each scored six points, while freshmen
McKenzie Bezon and
Alyssa Mountain each scored five points