NEWBURGH, N.Y. – The Mount Saint Mary College women's basketball team (2-4) dropped its yearly matchup with local rival Vassar College (4-2) by a score of 69-59 Tuesday evening at the Kaplan Center.
The Knights and Brewers played tight for much of the first half, but a 7-0 run halfway through the period put Vassar up, 20-13. The Brewer lead grew to as many as 12, but the Knights closed out the half on a 6-0 run to cut the deficit to six going into the break.
Both teams played back-and-forth basketball to open the second frame, but the Knights managed to get within one with 10:53 to play. After Vassar pushed its lead back to seven points, the Knights rallied back to tie the game at 53-53 with just under seven minutes to play. After a Vassar timeout, the Brewers scored six straight points, and eventually pushed its lead to 10 before the final buzzer for the 69-59 victory.
Caitlin Drakeley led the Brewers with 23 points and 12 boards for a double-double. Colleen O'Connell also registered a double-double with 10 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Samarah Cook came off the bench to contribute 14 points.
Senior forward
Natalie Candarelli (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y.) picked up her first double-double of the season with 15 points and 11 boards to lead the home team. Junior guard
Nicole Scicutella (Massapequa, N.Y.) added 10 points with a pair of three-pointers. Sophomore guard
Marisa Delzio (Brewster, N.Y.) led the Knights with four assists.
Vassar shot 45.8 percent on 27-of-59 shooting, including 4-of-7 (57.1 percent) from three-point range. The Knights were good on 35.2 percent (25-of-71) of their field goals and made just 2-of-16 (12.5 percent) of their shots from long range. The Brewers outrebounded the Knights, 49-33, but the Knights outscored their guests in the paint, 32-22. The Knights also scored 20 points off turnovers, while allowing just six off giveaways.
The Knights will look to turn things around when they host Alfred University at the Kaplan Center on Saturday, Dec. 6. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m.
Follow the Knights on Twitter at
@MSMCKnights
