By Tyler Morello
Staff Writer
The College’s first place women’s basketball team split their two games this past week. They started the week winning against Kean University, and then lost a close one to William Paterson University a few days later.
The Lions first outlasted Kean on Jan. 31 at Packer Hall, in what was a back-and-forth battle through three quarters. Trailing by two points heading into the final quarter, the Lions proceeded to outscore the Cougars 21-8 to win 68-57.
While Kean only missed four shots in the first quarter, making 9 of their 13 attempts, the College was able to stay within striking distance and kept the lead to four points heading into the second.
The next two quarters remained close, with many lead changes throughout. Yet, the Lions were able to take the punches the Cougars threw, just like in the first quarter. The College outscored the Cougars in the second quarter 17-15, and then matched them in the third, 13-13.
In the fourth quarter, the Lions ended the game on a 19-4 extended run. They were able to keep the Cougars off of the free-throw line while getting to the line themselves and knocking down 8 of 10 free throws. As a team, the Lions shot 16 for 19 from the stripe in the game.
Despite shooting 33.3 percent from the field to the Cougars' 39.7 percent, the Lions capitalized in other areas, making three more three-pointers and eight more free throws than them. The Lions also out-rebounded the Cougars on the offensive glass, snagging 17 offensive boards.
It was a complete team effort for the Lions, as the scoring was rather balanced. Nine players scored four or more points. Junior guard Nina Branchizio led the team with 12 points, followed by senior guard Julia Setaro with 10.
For Kean, Riley Ahrens and Shahd Badeer each posted double-doubles. Ahrens had 15 points and 11 rebounds, and Badeer had 14 and 13.
The Lions then went into their game on Feb. 3 against William Paterson on a five-game win streak. The Pioneers were 5-9 in conference play coming into the game but were able to pull out a win on their senior day.
It simply was not a great shooting day for the Lions, going 26.5 percent from the field and 17.2 percent from three. Even with these uncharacteristic numbers, they kept the score close throughout the entire game, but ended up falling 63-59.
The College was able to dominate the offensive glass once again. They had 19 offensive rebounds as a team, while senior guard Natalie Kolb grabbed 9 by herself. Kolb finished with an 11-point, 17-rebound double-double.
Setaro led the Lions in scoring with 19 points, and sophomore Katie Fricker added 11 points, knocking down three threes. Brianna Smith of the Pioneers was the high scorer of the game with 26 points on an efficient 9 for 15 shooting.
The Lions are now tied for second in the league and face first place Stockton University at Packer Hall on Feb. 7.
