Riverdale, N.Y. – Led by 19 points from sophomore
Jessica Rini (Seaford, N.Y.) and a 20 point fourth quarter, the Mount Saint Mary College Women's Basketball team scored a 57-48 Skyline Conference road win at defending champion Mount Saint Vincent on Saturday afternoon.
In a tightly contested game, the Knights pulled away for the Dolphins after falling behind by a point with 8:23 left in regulation time. After falling behind 38-37, the Knights ripped off the next 13 points, including seven points from Rini, to pull in front by a game-high 12 points with just over two minutes left in regulation time.
Mount Saint Mary held the Dolphins to under 30-percent shooting in the second half and outscored Mount Saint Vincent 12-1 from the free-throw line after the break. Rini totaled nine points after halftime and combined with
Bridget Kelly (Farmington, Conn.) to total five of the team's 10 field goals in the second half.
The Knights carried a three point lead into halftime on Saturday after holding the Dolphins to 0-for-8 shooting from behind the arc in the first 20 minutes. Mount Saint Mary held the Dolphins without a field goal in the final 4:48 of the second quarter and received free-throws from Rini and
Kayla Cleare (West Hempstead, N.Y.) and a lay-in from
Kassidy Hallum (Lake Grove, N.Y.) with nine seconds left in the half to carry a 25-22 lead into the break.
Rini totaled 10 points prior to the intermission on 4-for-9 shooting and finished the game 7-for-15 from the field on her way to matching her career-high in points. Rini picked up her second double-double of the season with 14 rebounds, adding three blocked shots and two steals.
Cleare reached double-figures in rebounds for the fourth time in the last five games with 11 boards. She added eight points and a pair of blocks.
Janae Graham (Orange, Conn.) recorded a career-high 10 rebounds and handed out five assists.
Kelly closed out a strong game with eight points and nine rebounds for the Knights with Hallum rounding out the afternoon with six points and seven boards.
The Knights finished the game shooting 32.8-percent from the floor and held Mount Saint Vincent to just 30.8-percent shooting in the game. The Knights outscored the Dolphins 16-5 from the free-throw line in the game and turned 25 offensive rebounds into 12 second chance points.
Saturday's win moves Mount Saint Mary to 4-5 overall and to 2-1 in Skyline Conference play. Next up for the Knights is a home league date with Old Westbury on Tuesday. Tip-off with the Panthers is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.
