Riverdale, N.Y. (January 21, 2008) ? The Lady Jaspers cruised to a 10 point victory over Rider University today at Draddy Gymnasium. Senior guard Gabrielle Cottrell had a game high 20 points in Manhattan's win.
At the start of the game, the Lady Jasper came out strong as they went up 4-0 in the first minute, causing a Rider timeout. The Broncs came back and cut Manhattan's to lead to three, 13-10 with 14:37 left in the half. But the Lady J's marched to a 9-2 run over the next five minutes to go up 22-12. The lead was once again cut down to three but a lay-up by senior Joann Nwafili and a three pointer by fellow senior Aubrie Dellinger gave the Lady Jaspers a nine point lead, 30-21, with 5:28 left in the first half.
The Lady J's were not done as they ended the half with a 6-0 run to go into the locker room up 40-26. Caitlin Flood finished the half with 13 points as she was a perfect 5-5 from the field including going 3-4 from the free throw line. Cottrell had eight points in the first half and Manhattan was looking to stay strong in the second half.
The Lady Jaspers did just that as they increased their lead after a Kelly Regan lay-up with 15:49 left in the game, 48-34. Manhattan's three point shooting kept them out in front of Rider as they would not led the Broncs get closer than seven points the rest of the way. With the score showing 70-63 with :32 seconds left, a pair of free throws by Flood followed by another pair by freshman Nicole Harrison solidified the game for the Lady J's. Manhattan would cruise onto a 10 point victory and improve their conference record to 6-1.
With this win, the Lady Jaspers are now 11-7, tying their highest win total for the past four seasons. Cottrell shot 6-10 from the field as well as a perfect 4-4 from the free throw line in her 20 point performance. Flood finished the game with 15 points and five boards and Nwafili tallied 11 points, and setting a career high in assists with nine. As a team, Manhattan shot 63% from the field and 50% from three point range. The Lady Jaspers defense held Rider to just 39% from the field and continues to increase their defensive numbers.
The Lady J's will return to action this weekend as they will travel to Buffalo to take on Canisius College on January 25. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Following that game, they will continue on the road against Niagara University on January 27.
