Jan. 18, 2009
LOUDONVILLE, N.Y. - The #21 Marist women's basketball team survived a scare on Sunday, defeating Siena 65-55 at UHY Court at the ARC. The Saints led 51-48 with 4:37 left when Julianne Viani (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) hit a three-pointer to tie the game at 51-51. The Red Foxes then got a three-point play from Rachele Fitz (Seven Hills, Ohio) to continue a 17-4 run that ended the game. Marist remains perfect in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference play at 8-0 and has won its last 35 games against MAAC opponents.
Viani was 6-for-10 from the field and tied a career-high with nine made free throws. Fitz scored in double-figures for the 52nd straight game, putting in 15 points and had nine rebounds. Erica Allenspach (Miamisburg, Ohio) had eight points and four rebounds. Corielle Yarde (Leesport, Pa.) added seven points, five rebounds, and a career-high four steals off the bench.
Siena (5-11, 4-3 MAAC) opened the game on a 9-0 run, getting three-pointers from Allie Lindemann and Cathy Cockrum 3:27 into the game. Marist got on the board at the 16:14 mark with a Maria Laterza (Brooklyn, N.Y.) layup, followed up by an Allenspach jumper with 15:30 to go. Siena got the lead back up to seven, 11-4, on a Sarah Fullmer basket. The Red Foxes then scored the next six points as Yarde put in her own missed layup to make the score 11-10 with 12:05 to go in the first half. Marist tied the game at 14-14 with a Viani layup at the 10:58 mark.
The Saints took the lead back with a Fullmer triple, going ahead 17-14 with 10:09 to go in the half. Marist came back and took its first lead of the game at the 5:54 mark when Allenspach hit a driving layup to make the score 22-21. The two teams traded the lead for the rest of the half. The Red Foxes had their largest lead of the half with 3:25 to go when Lynzee Johnson (Bellbrook, Ohio) split a pair of free throws to give Marist a 25-23 lead. Siena took a 27-25 lead at the half on back-to-back baskets by Serena Moore.
Marist (17-1, 8-0 MAAC) fell behind by six early in the second half, 33-27, as Siena got baskets from Moore, Cockrum, and Merrick Volpe. Down 33-28, the Red Foxes got a three-pointer from Yarde and a Fitz basket to tie the game at 38-38 with 12:01 left in the game. After Lindemann scored five straight Siena points to give the Saints a 43-38 lead, Viani converted a three-point and with a Fitz basket tied the game 43-43 with 9:42 to go. The Saints then took a four-point lead on baskets by Lindemann and Volpe, going ahead 47-43 with 7:36 to go.
The Red Foxes came back and tied the game 51-51 at the 4:37 mark with Viani's second three of the game. Marist then took the lead on a Fitz three-point play 1:05 later. The Red Foxes made 9-of-10 free throws down the stretch to get the 10-point win.
The Red Foxes shot 38.5% from the field, including a 47.8% mark in the second half. Siena shot 37.1% from the field. Marist outrebounded the Saints 41-33 and forced 16 turnovers. The Red Foxes won the game at the free throw line, making 21-of-26 free throws to Siena's 2-of-3. Lindemann led Siena with 17 points while Fullmer added 14 points off the bench.
The #21 Red Foxes return to the McCann Center on Friday, January 23rd for a 4:30 game against the Fairfield Stags. The game will be televised on ESPNU and is the first of a doubleheader with the Marist men's basketball team. Fans can purchase tickets to all of these at GoRedFoxes.com, or by stopping by the Marist Ticket Office located in the McCann Center. For more information, call the Marist Ticket Office at (845) 575-3553.
