Naz Wins by Two; Ithaca Drops Second Straight Game
NAZARETH 67, Wesleyan 65
In its second game of the 2014 Land of Magic Classic, hosted by Embry-Riddle, Nazareth defeated Wesleyan 67-65 in a non-conference women's basketball game on Monday afternoon. Senior
Hannah Runyon delivered the game-winning basket with only four seconds to play in regulation to give the Golden Flyers the victory. The Cardinals had a last-second shot attempt but were unable to convert. Junior
Sam Sorge amassed a career-high 23 points on 7-14 shooting from the field, and she made 6-8 free throws to lead Nazareth in scoring. Her previous scoring high was 17 points. Classmate
Veronica Peck fell one point shy of tying her career-high in points as she finished with 17 points as she hit 6-9 field goals, including 4-5 from outside the arc.
With the victory, the Golden Flyers even their overall record at 4-4. Following the loss, Wesleyan drops to 3-5 overall.
The second half had six lead changes, and neither team had more than a four-point lead in the final 10 minutes. The Cardinals claimed an eight-point lead, 49-41, following a three-pointer by Danielle Gervacio with just over 12 minutes to play. Nazareth cut into its deficit with a free throw by Sorge and a layup from junior
Lindsey Kelly. After Wesleyan answered with a two-point jumper, Peck connected on a three to bring the Golden Flyers to within four points, 51-47.
The Golden Flyers continued its scoring run with nine of the next 11 points to claim a 56-53 lead with 5:36 left in regulation. Sorge made a pair of shots from the free throw line, which was followed by a layup from Kelly, and another three from Peck. Runyon capped the run with two more free throws from the charity stripe. Sorge gave Nazareth a four-point lead, which was its largest lead since the opening minutes of the second period, when she converted a three-point play with 3:09 remaining.
With one minute to play, Wesleyan's Cherkira Lashley gave the Cardinals a temporary lead, 64-63, after connecting on two layups in a 43-second span. Sorge responded with a layup on the Golden Flyers' next possession. After the Cardinals managed to make only 1 of 2 free throws with 28 seconds to play, Nazareth took the lead for good on Runyon's layup in the final seconds.
The teams traded baskets to open the first half, with the game staying within four points through the opening 10 minutes. The Golden Flyers stretched a 15-14 edge into 28-17 advantage with a 13-3 scoring run that spanned almost five minutes. Sorge scored the first 11 points of the run as she converted a pair of free throws then buried three shots from outside the arc. Peck capped the run with a layup to give Nazareth its largest lead of the game. Wesleyan closed the Golden Flyers' lead to 33-29 at the break.
Sorge and Peck each had 11 points in the first half as they combined to make 7-12 field goals, including 5-6 on their three-point attempts. Kelly also finished in double-digits with 14 points. Runyon and junior
Julia Brew added eight points and five points, respectively. In addition to her 23 points, Sorge recorded a game-high five assists to set up additional scoring opportunities. Kelly grabbed a team-high eight rebounds.
Wesleyan scored 18 points off Nazareth's 20 turnovers to stay in the game. The Cardinals committed only seven turnovers.
Cabrini 59, ITHACA 42
The Ithaca College women's basketball team suffered its second consecutive loss and was held to its lowest point total of the season in a 59-42 setback to Cabrini on Monday in Puerto Rico. Ithaca finishes the 2014 portion of its schedule with a 6-3 record.
The Bombers opened up the contest on a 4-0 run over the first 53 second of the game and would build their lead to seven points at 13-6 by the 12:52 mark. Cabrini erased its deficit quickly, and took a 15-13 lead, with three straight three-pointers in a two-minute span.
Freshman
Jordan Beers (Franklin, N.Y.) made a pair of free throws on Ithaca's next possession to tie the game at 15-15, but Cabrini ran off eight unanswered points to go up, 23-15, with 6:45 remaining in the half. The Cavaliers would stay ahead by at least six points for the rest of the half and went into intermission with a 33-24 cushion.
Within the first two minutes of the second half, Ithaca fell behind by 11 points at 37-26. Seniors
Ally Mnich (Holmdel, N.J.) and
Ali Ricchiuti (New Hyde Park, N.Y.) pulled the Bombers back to within seven, 37-30, on consecutive trips down the floor, but Cabrini answered right back to regain its double-digit advantage with 14:44 left in regulation.
Senior
Samantha Klie (Wyckoff, N.J.) hit a jumper at the 14:25 mark to pull the Bombers back to within nine points at 41-32, but that was the closest they would get for the rest of the game. Ithaca only scored 10 points for the rest of the contest and was held scoreless over a six-minute span in the final 14 minutes.
Klie paced Ithaca with nine points on 4-for-11 shooting, while Beers added six points with three rebounds. Ricchiuti chipped in five points with nine rebounds and Mnich had four points.
Sophomore
Shayna Gaskins (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.) tallied eight points and three rebounds in eight minutes. Senior
Geena Brady (Syracuse, N.Y.) finished with four points and three rebounds.
The Bombers struggled from three-point range, shooting just 1-for-11 and went 17-for-52 from the floor. Ithaca pulled down 37 rebounds but committed 17 turnovers. Cabrini shot 23-for-71 overall and 5-for-18 from distance, while grabbing 52 rebounds.