Box Score
Click here to view the 2011-12 Manhattan Women's Basketball Yearbook
RIVERDALE, N.Y. - On "Kid's Day Out" at Draddy Gymnasium, the Manhattan College women's basketball team put on a show for a crowd that included more than 500 elementary school students. The Jaspers (9-8, 3-2 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) made eight of their first nine shots and never looked back, posting a 73-51 victory over Canisius (8-8, 2-3 MAAC) to end their two-game losing streak.
"It was very important to get this win over Canisius," Schyanne Halfkenny (Hyde Park, Mass.) said. "We came out hard and strong ready to play."
"We wanted to get a fast start and build upon it," Head Coach John Olenowski said. "But this team (Canisius) has a knack for coming back, so we really needed to have defensive intensity for 40 minutes, which I think we did."
The Jaspers scored the first five points of the game and led 17-4 at the first media timeout. Canisius trimmed its deficit to 12 points at 26-14, but Monica Roeder (Marlton, N.J.) sank a three-pointer on the next Manhattan possession to spark a 13-5 run that put the Jaspers in front 39-19. After a pair of Canisius baskets brought the Griffs back within 15, the Jaspers ended the half on a 6-0 run to take a 45-24 lead into the locker room. Manhattan made its first five three-point attempts and shot 70 percent (7-for-10) from downtown in the half. Overall, the Jaspers shot 63 percent (17-of-27) in the opening 20 minutes.
It was more of the same in the second half, as Halfkenny scored the first nine points of the period to increase the Jaspers' lead to 54-24. A Halfkenny trey at the 9:35 mark gave Manhattan its largest lead of the game, a 33-point, 63-30 advantage. After a pair of Alyssa Herrington (Cambridge, N.Y.) free throws made it 68-38 with 3:54 remaining, Canisius ended the game on a 13-5 run to trim the final margin to 22 points, 73-51.
Ten different Jaspers scored and eight had at least five points, led by Halfkenny's career-high 22-point effort. Roeder finished with eight points and a team-high four rebounds, and Nadia Peters (Bronx, N.Y.) tallied eight points, five steals and two blocks. Toni-Ann Lawrence (Elmont, N.Y.) also recorded eight points, while Herrington, Ondya Morgan (New Brunswick, N.J.), and Lindsey Loutsenhizer (North Huntingdon, Pa.) posted six points apiece. Loutsenhizer added five assists and three steals. Allison Skrec (Roselle, N.J.) handed out five assists to go along with five points. The Jaspers shot a season-high 54.3 percent (25-of-46) from the field, including 55.6 percent (10-of-18) from three-point range, and 81.3 percent (13-of-16) at the free throw line. Manhattan also forced 29 Canisius turnovers, which it converted into 32 points.
"Everyone who got on the court contributed," Halfkenny said. "Everyone played well on offense and defense today. It was nice."
Kayla Hoohuli had 13 points to lead Canisius. Jamie Ruttle and Ashley Wilkes each added nine points, while Ashley Durham dished out three assists to go along with seven points. Melissa Gardner pulled down a game-high five rebounds, as the Griffs outrebounded the Jaspers 28-21. Canisius shot 41.9 percent (18-of-43) from the field, 37.5 percent (6-of-16) from downtown, and 75 percent (9-of-12) at the charity stripe.
The Jaspers are back in action on Sunday, when they visit Iona (7-9, 3-2 MAAC) at 1 p.m. Manhattan won all three meetings with the Gales last season, including a 59-47 victory in the quarterfinals of the MAAC Tournament.
NOTES: It was Manhattan's second annual "Kid's Day Out" game, and the winners of an essay contest about physical fitness were recognized at halftime...The Jaspers beat Canisius for the fourth straight time, but the Griffs still lead the all-time series 28-21...Halfkenny's previous career-high was 15 points, which she set twice this season...Hers was the third 20-point game by a Manhattan player this season, and the first since Loutsenhizer tallied 21 at Army on Nov. 23...As a team, the Jaspers shot better than 50 percent from the field for the first time since going 29-for-49 (59.2 percent) in a 74-53 win over Siena on Jan. 5, 2010...Manhattan drained at least 10 three-pointers for the third time this season...The Jaspers had more assists than turnovers for the seventh time this season, and improved to 6-1 in those games...All 12 players on the active roster saw at least seven minutes of action...The 11 a.m. start time was Manhattan's earliest of the regular season.
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