Purchase, N.Y. – Katie Smith (Goshen, N.Y.) scored a career and game-high 26 points and
Morina Bojka (Prospect, Conn.) scored 21 points as the Mount Saint Mary College Women's Basketball team took to the road and came away with an 80-71 victory at Manhattanville. Tuesday's win is the Mount's seventh straight and the victory wraps-up the top seed in next week's Skyline Conference Championship.
With the victory, Mount Saint Mary improves to 19-3 overall on the season and 17-1 in Skyline Conference play while the Valiants slip to 16-7 overall and 12-6 against league rivals.
First Half
- Mount Saint Mary trailed 21-16 after a high paced first opening 10 minutes.
- Manhattanville went 9-for-18 from the floor in the first period, including 3-for-4 from three-point range.
- The Knights finished the opening stanza 6-for-17 from the floor and without a triple in six attempts.
- After falling behind 9-4 in the early going, Mount Saint Mary took its first lead of the game on a pair of Bojka free-throws that pushed it in front 10-9 at the midway point of the period.
- The Knights lead grew to 12-9 on a Bojka jumper before the two sides traded the lead with just under three minutes left in the first.
- Following a pair of Erin Smith (Goshen, N.Y.) free-throws put the Mount in front 14-13, the Valiants scored eight of the final 10 points of the quarter over the final 2:33.
- Spencer Shore accounted for six points over the run and the Mount went without a field goal over the final 67 seconds.
- After being held to 16 points in the opening period, Mount Saint Mary erupted for 27 points in the second stanza on 63.2-percent shooting.
- The Knights scored the first four points of the period to climb to within 21-20, but would not regain the lead until a K. Smith triple gave them a 25-24 lead with 7:23 left before halftime.
- The two teams would trade the lead seven times following the Smith triple before the Knights closed the half with a 12-7 stretch.
- Smith started the closing run with a three-pointer and capped the half with a jumper at the buzzer to send the Knights to a 43-40 halftime advantage.
- After struggling from the floor in the first period, the Knights finished the half shooting 52.8-percent overall despite a 2-for-13 showing from three-point range.
- Manhattanville shot 45.5-percent prior to halftime and went 5-for-8 from three-point range.
- K. Smith led the way before halftime for the Knights with 21 points.
Second Half
- Mount Saint Mary used a 13-4 stretch over 4:42 in the third stanza to build a 56-48 lead on a Gabriella Rafaniello (Brooklyn, N.Y.) jumper at the 4:24 mark.
- Following the Rafaniello jumper, the Knights got just a Ciarra Quinn (Bayside, N.Y.) bucket over the final 4:24.
- Manhattanville scored 11 of the final 13 points of the third stanza, going 4-for-7 from the floor to grab a 59-58 lead with 10 minutes left to play.
- Both teams shot under 40-percent in the third period with each team connecting on one three-pointer. Manhattanville made one more field goal than the Mount and outscored the Knights 2-0 from the free-throw line in the quarter.
- Manhattanville continued its run to start the fourth period, scoring the first six points of the frame to surge in front 65-58 on a Shore jumper at the 7:52 mark.
- K. Smith stopped the run with a lay-up, but the Knights would not be able to pull even until an Annie Keenan (Nesconset, N.Y.) lay-in with 4:47 left in regulation.
- The Valiants moved back in front by a point before a 10-0 run for the Knights pushed them in front 77-68.
- Lauren Desrats (Warwick, N.Y.) started the run with a lay-up with Bojka supplying five points, including a triple, that gave the Mount a 74-68 lead with 3:30 left to play.
- Jamison Agostino hit a three for the Valiants to cut the deficit to 77-71, but a Toriana Tabasco (Hillsdale, N.J.) bucket and a free-throw from Bojka sealed the win for the Mount.
- Mount Saint Mary improved to 52.9-percent shooting in the fourth period and hit on a pair of three-pointers.
- Manhattanville was limited to 35.7-percent shooting in the final stanza and just 1-for-5 from behind the arc.
For The Knights
- Smith completed her career night 11-for-18 from the field, including a 3-for-6 showing from three-point range. She added a pair of assists in the win for the Knights.
- Bojka, who was limited to 21 minutes due to foul trouble, finished with 21 points on 8-for-14 shooting. She closed the victory with five rebounds and a trio of steals for the Mount.
- Keenan contributed 11 points for the Mount and led the team with eight caroms. Keenan joined Bojka with three thefts adding a pair of helpers.
- Rafaniello collected seven rebounds for the Knights and chipped in four points.
- Tabasco rounded out the victory with six points, four rebounds and two assists.
For The Valiants
- Shore led Manhattanville with 20 points on 8-for-16 shooting, including four triples.
- Faith Johnson-Desilvia scored 17 points and added eight rebounds.
- Agostino chipped in 11 points off the bench, connecting on a trio of three-pointers.
- Niyona Smith led all players with 14 rebounds and scored eight points.
Game Statistics
- Mount Saint Mary finished the night shooting 46.6-percent overall, but just 20.8-percent from three-point range.
- Manhattanville shot 42-percent overall and went 7-for-15 from three-point range.
- Mount Saint Mary forced 14 turnovers and closed the night with an 18-13 edge in points off of miscues.
- Each team finished with 13 offensive rebounds with second chance tallies even at 14-14.
What's Next
- Mount Saint Mary stays on the road for a visit to Yeshiva on Thursday. The game will be played at the Peter Jay Sharp Center on the campus of the College of Mount Saint Vincent.
- Manhattanville plays host to Mount Saint Vincent on Thursday.
