Jan. 19, 2007
Final Stats |
Quotes
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - The Marist women's basketball team remained perfect in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play on Friday with a 73-34 home victory over Saint Peter's. Marist, which now stands at 14-4 overall and 7-0 in the MAAC, earned its fifth consecutive victory and 17th straight triumph at the McCann Center.
The Red Foxes held the Peahens to .180 shooting (9-for-50) from the field, and Saint Peter's hit just three of its 24 field-goal attempts in the second half. The .180 mark is the lowest the Red Foxes have permitted in Brian Giorgis' five years as head coach. Marist, which led the nation in fewest turnovers per game at 11.8 entering the contest, committed just seven turnovers against 24 assists.
Red-shirt junior center Meg Dahlman (Spencerport, N.Y.) led all scorers with 14 points to go along with nine rebounds and two blocked shots. Dahlman shot 6-for-10 from the field and shot 2-for-3 from three-point range. Freshman forward Rachele Fitz (Seven Hills, Ohio) had her second consecutive double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds - the highest single-game rebounding total for any Red Fox this season. Fitz also finished with a career-high three steals. Junior forward Sarah Smrdel (Mentor, Ohio) added 10, including two three-pointers.
Red-shirt sophomore guard Julianne Viani (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) paced the Red Foxes with six assists. Freshman guard Brittany Engle (South Easton, Mass.) scored nine points, tied her career high with four rebounds and set a career high with four assists. Senior point guard Nikki Flores (Montvale, N.J.) also had four assists apiece, giving Marist four players who finished with at least four assists in the game.
Marist jumped out to a quick 10-2 lead, but Saint Peter's scored eight consecutive points to tie the game. However, the Peahens did not take the lead at any point. With 5:35 left in the first half, a three-pointer by junior guard Courtney Kolesar (Concord, Ohio) started Marist on a 15-0 run, as the Red Foxes expanded their lead from seven to 22 heading into the intermission. Saint Peter's never got closer than 20 points in the second half.
Freshman guard Natasha Morris came off the bench to lead the Peahens with eight points. Senior forward Elyse Siciliano had a team-high nine rebounds for Saint Peter's to go along with seven points. The Peahens had just three assists in the game and committed 20 turnovers as they fell to 6-10 overall and 2-5 in the MAAC. It was the third time this season the Red Foxes did not allow a team to have one double-digit scorer in a game.
Marist has now won its last 19 home games against MAAC opponents. The Red Foxes have also tied their highest total of victories without a loss to start a conference season in program history; Marist started last season 7-0 in the MAAC as well. The 34 points permitted by the Red Foxes in tonight's game is tied for the second lowest total allowed under Brian Giorgis, and the ninth time Marist has held a team under 40 in the last five years. The Red Foxes also set a school record tonight by holding a fourth team under 40 points this season.
The Red Foxes return to action on Sunday, when they host Iona at 2 p.m. At 7-0, the Gaels are the only other undefeated team in MAAC play. The contest will be broadcast locally on Time Warner Cable 6.
Preceding the Iona-Marist contest will be this year's Alumnae Game at 11:30 a.m., to which admission is free. Special ceremonies to honor the alumnae will take place at halftime of the Iona-Marist game. For more information, or to purchase tickets to the Marist vs. Iona game, call the Marist Ticket Office at (845) 575-3553.
