2012-13 Manhattan Women's Basketball Yearbook
BALTIMORE - The Manhattan College women's basketball team struggled offensively on Friday night. The Jaspers (6-18, 3-10 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) were held to just 26 percent (13-of-50) shooting, including 11.8 percent (2-of-17) from three-point range, in a 54-34 loss to Loyola (10-14, 5-8 MAAC) at Reitz Arena.
The Jaspers scored the first bucket of the game before Loyola quickly countered with eight straight points to take a lead it would not relinquish. Manhattan got back within three when Toni-Ann Lawrence's (Elmont, N.Y.) jumper made it 8-5 with 13:06 left in the first half, but the Greyhounds responded with a 7-0 rally to extend their advantage to 15-5 midway through the period. After the Jaspers trimmed their deficit to four at 17-13, Loyola ended the half on a 7-2 rally and took a 24-15 cushion into the locker room.
Loyola then broke the game open with a trio of three-pointers early in the second half. The Greyhounds started the period on a 22-7 spurt to extend their lead to 24 points, 46-22, with 10:28 remaining. After the margin reached a game-high 25 points at 52-27, the Jaspers rallied for seven straight points to make it an 18-point game, 52-34, with 2:40 left. Loyola's Diana Logan hit a jumper at the 1:53 mark to cap the scoring in the Greyhounds' 54-34 victory.
Monica Roeder (Marlton, N.J.) led the Jaspers with 14 points and eight rebounds, which tied her career-high. Lawrence added nine points and six boards, while Allison Skrec (Roselle, N.J.) registered six points to go along with five assists and four steals. The Jaspers committed just nine turnovers in the game and went 6-for-10 (60 percent) at the charity stripe.
Nicole Krusen drained seven three-pointers and finished with a career-high 21 points for the Greyhounds. Nai Brown contributed 10 points off the bench, while MAAC Preseason Player of the Year Katie Sheahin tallied six points, four assists and 11 rebounds. Tiffany Padgett grabbed 10 boards, as Loyola outrebounded Manhattan 58-28, including a 24-3 edge on the offensive glass. Kara Marshall and Alyssa Sutherland each handed out six assists, and Sutherland added six rebounds. Loyola shot 30.6 percent (19-of-62) from the field, 50 percent (9-of-18) from downtown, and 41.2 percent (7-of-17) at the free throw line.
Manhattan continues its season-long four-game road trip with a visit to first-place Marist (18-6, 13-0 MAAC) at 2 p.m. on Sunday. The Red Foxes, who posted a 60-39 victory over the Jaspers at Draddy Gymnasium on Jan. 25, have won 23 straight games against MAAC opponents since their loss to Manhattan last season.
NOTES: Manhattan and Loyola split the season series for the second straight year...This was the final regular season meeting between the squads as conference rivals, as Loyola will be a member of the Patriot League in 2013-14...The Greyhounds lead the all-time series 26-24...Loyola's 58 rebounds were the most by a Manhattan opponent this season...Roeder grabbed eight rebounds for the fourth time in her career...The Jaspers had a positive assist/turnover ratio for the second straight game and committed fewer than 10 turnovers for the first time since Feb. 10, 2012, when they had eight against Niagara...It was Loyola's "Play 4 Kay" game for breast cancer awareness, and the Jaspers wore pink t-shirts during pregame warmups.