Box Score
Click here to view the 2010-11 Manhattan Women's Basketball Media Guide
LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J. - After dropping its first two Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) games of the season, the Manhattan College women's basketball team is now on a roll. Abby Wentworth (Portland, Maine) had her second straight 20-point effort, putting up a game-high 24 points, to lead the Lady Jaspers (11-5, 3-2 MAAC) to their third consecutive victory, 71-43 over Rider (1-15, 1-4 MAAC) at Alumni Gymnasium on Thursday afternoon.
Manhattan got off to a rough start offensively, missing its first 11 field goal attempts, which allowed Rider to jump out to an early 7-2 lead. The Lady Jaspers finally broke through on a three-pointer by Wentworth at the 13:55 mark, then took their first lead when another Wentworth trey made it 12-10 with 10:51 remaining in the first half.
Manhattan never trailed after that, as Wentworth's three ball ignited a 15-8 run that put the Lady Jaspers in front 27-18 with 3:26 left before halftime. Rider hung around, trimming its deficit to six on a jumper by Alicia Hall with 11 seconds remaining in the half, but Lindsey Loutsenhizer (North Huntingdon, Pa.) sank a three as time expired to give the Lady Jaspers a 32-23 advantage at the break.
The Lady Jaspers started the second half on a 12-2 run to extend their lead to 19 points, 44-25, before Rider rallied for six of the next seven points to get back within 14 at 45-31. However, the Broncs would get no closer. The margin reached 20 when a Nadia Peters (Bronx, N.Y.) layup made it 60-39, and the Lady Jaspers pulled away late for a 71-43 victory.
"I thought we played a very sound all-around game," Head Coach John Olenowski said. "Defensively, we forced a lot of turnovers, and I thought we did a really good job of dictating the tempo. Abby had a great all-around game and ran the offense very smoothly. I also felt we got a nice lift off the bench from Schyanne Halfkenny (Hyde Park, Mass.) and Alicia Marculitis (Worcester, Mass.)."
Wentworth's 24 points were one shy of her career-high. She also had three assists and six steals. Peters was the only other Lady Jasper in double figures with 10 points, while Loutsenhizer added nine points and a team-high seven rebounds. Toni-Ann Lawrence (Elmont, N.Y.) contributed eight points to go along with four boards. She also tied a career-high with four assists. Halfkenny also notched eight points, including six at the foul line. Despite the shaky start from the floor, Manhattan ended up shooting 40.4 percent (23-of-57) for the game. The Lady Jaspers shot 27.8 percent (5-of-18) from three-point land and 80 percent (20-of-25) at the free throw line.
Caitlin Bopp had a double-double for Rider. She tallied 13 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, as the Broncs outrebounded the Lady Jaspers 41-33. Ali Heller, one of the nation's leading three-point shooters, sank four treys and finished with 12 points. Heller also handed out a team-high three assists. As a team, Rider shot 30.8 percent (16-of-52) from the field and 26.3 percent (5-of-19) from downtown. The Broncs went just 6-for-15 (40 percent) at the charity stripe.
The Lady Jaspers conclude their three-game road trip with a visit to Fairfield (10-4, 3-1 MAAC) at 1 p.m. on Sunday. Manhattan swept the season series in 2009-10 and has won three straight against the Stags.
NOTES: It was Rider's Kid's Day Out game, resulting in the early start time...The Lady Jaspers now lead the all-time series 23-8...Wentworth is the first Manhattan player to have back-to-back 20-point outings since Loutsenhizer put up 24 against Canisius and 21 against Loyola on Feb. 21-26, 2010...Her career-high of 25 points was set at Niagara on Jan. 16, 2009...The Lady Jaspers forced 26 Rider turnovers, which they converted into 25 points...Manhattan won by at least 28 points for the fourth time this season...After failing to win three games in a row at any point in 2008-09 or 2009-10, the Lady Jaspers are now on their third different winning streak of at least three games this season...Ondya Morgan (Rahway, N.J.) tallied the first points of her collegiate career with a layup in the second half.
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