Box Score
Box Score
LAWRENCEVILLE, N.J. – Monica Roeder (Marlton, N.J.) scored her 1,200th career point and moved into the Top 10 on the Manhattan College women's basketball program's all-time scoring list in the Jaspers' (4-12, 3-4 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) 50-47 victory over Rider (7-9, 3-4 MAAC) at Alumni Gymnasium on Thursday evening.
The Jaspers were clinging to a 48-47 advantage when Allison Skrec (Roselle, N.J.) hit a floater to increase the lead to three with 19 second left. After each team took a timeout, Shayna Ericksen (Long Valley, N.J.) came up with a huge steal, Manhattan's 18th of the game, and was fouled immediately. She missed the front end of a one-and-one, however, and Rider's MyNeshia McKenzie grabbed the rebound, giving the Broncs one final chance. Rider drove down the court and Mikal Johnson attempted a three at the buzzer, but it was off the mark, sealing the win for Manhattan and snapping the Jaspers' four-game losing streak.
“I thought we played great defense from start to finish and had balanced scoring,” Head Coach John Olenowski said. “Defensively, those 18 steals were a big key, and we got some key defensive stops down the stretch.”
After Rider scored the first basket of the game, a three-pointer, Manhattan scored 17 of the next 19 points, and the Jaspers opened up a 17-5 advantage on back-to-back Roeder treys. Nicole Isaacs (Fair Haven, N.J.) sank a three-pointer at the 7:16 mark to put Manhattan up 24-13, but the Broncs responded with a 13-0 rally to take the lead, 26-24. Maeve Parahus (Congers, N.Y.) followed with a layup to even the score at 26-26 before Rider went back in front on a Lashay Banks jumper. However, a Skrec layup with 1:14 left in the half knotted the score once more at 28-28, and it would remain deadlocked at intermission.
The sides traded baskets to begin the second half before a pair of Blake Underhill (Edgewater, N.J.) free throws ignited an 8-1 Manhattan run that gave the Jaspers a 38-31 advantage. Rider pulled within one at 42-41, but Skrec hit a layup on the other end to increase the Jaspers' lead to 44-41 with 4:52 remaining.
Rider again cut the margin to one on a McKenzie layup with 4:32 left, but the Jaspers again extended the lead to three when Roeder hit a layup to make it 46-43 at the 4:09 mark. After McKenzie sank two free throws to once again make it a one-point game, it would remain that way for two minutes before an Ericksen layup with 1:34 to go.
Underhill got a steal on the ensuing Rider possession, but the Broncs got the ball back when Marritta Gillcrease grabbed the rebound after blocking a shot with 47 seconds left. McKenzie then hit a layup to pull Rider within 48-47. The Broncs immediately took timeout and chose not to foul, and Skrec's jumper as the shot clock wound down gave the Jaspers a three-point edge, 50-47, with 19 seconds remaining.
“I'm extremely proud of our effort,” Olenowski said. “We felt this was a game we sorely needed, and I'm so happy we were able to win it.”
Roeder was the only Jasper in double-figures, finishing with 16 points while also grabbing seven rebounds. Skrec tallied eight points, five boards and six assists, and Underhill notched eight points and four steals. Isaacs also had eight points to go along with a career-high six assists. Ericksen, meanwhile, collected seven rebounds and added six steals. The Jaspers shot 40.8 percent (20-of-49) from the field and forced 26 Rider turnovers. Manhattan went 6-for-12 (50 percent) from three-point range, but was just 4-for-11 (36.4 percent) at the free throw line.
McKenzie recorded 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Broncs. Gillcrease also corralled 10 boards to go along with six points and three blocks, while Banks tallied seven points. Julia Duggan notched six points and six rebounds, and Kornelija Valiuskye handed out four assists. Rider shot 38.5 percent (20-of-52) from the field and outrebounded Manhattan 40-28. The Broncs shot 20 percent (3-of-15) from downtown and 57.1 percent (4-of-7) at the charity stripe.
Manhattan is off this weekend before concluding its three-game road trip with a visit to first-place Iona (13-2, 6-0 MAAC) at 7 p.m. on Monday. The Gaels, who have won 12 straight, take on Fairfield on Saturday.
NOTES: Roeder currently has 1,202 career points…She moved past both Cari-Lynn Piotrowski and Susan Nangle on the Jaspers' all-time scoring list…With four treys, Roeder also passed Brooke Renkens for second place all-time in three-pointers (216)…The Jaspers snapped a two-game losing streak against Rider and improved to 27-10 all-time against the Broncs…Isaacs' previous career-high was five assists against Monmouth on Dec. 31…The Jaspers were tied at the end of the first half for the first time this season…Manhattan held its opponent under 50 points for the first time this season and the 39th time in Olenowski's tenure…The Jaspers didn't trail at any point in the second half…The 18 steals matched the Jaspers' season-high, and the 26 forced turnovers established a new season-best…Assistant Coach Christine Sikiric played at Rider from 2004-06.
