POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - Brandy Gang (Hartville, Ohio) scored a game-high 20 points and the Marist women's basketball team held off a late Loyola charge for a 70-62 victory in a ESPNU College Basketball Built by the Home Depot contest Friday night at McCann Arena.
Gang hit 12 of 14 free throws to reach the 20 points, tying her career-high which she set against Niagara earlier in the week. She also finished one rebound short of a double-double, pulling down nine boards. Leanne Ockenden (Syracuse, N.Y.) had 12 points, including hitting a personal best four three-pointers, and set a career-high with eight rebounds. Casey Dulin (Milford, Conn.) added 14 points and seven rebounds and Kelsey Beynnon (Burlington, Vt.) contributed with 11 points and six boards. As a team, Marist out-rebounded Loyola 43-37, including 13 on the offensive glass.
The Red Foxes (12-6, 7-0 MAAC) held a comfortable 16-point lead at 65-49 with 2:23 left to play following an Ockenden three-pointer and two Gang free throws. Loyola (6-11, 2-4 MAAC) however, began to use a pressure defense and quickly forced a couple of Marist turnovers and scored nine straight points to cut the lead to seven at 65-58 with just 64 seconds remaining.
Gang and Dulin remained calm under pressure however, hitting five of six free throws down the stretch, and the Red Foxes defense only allowed two harmless layups to hang on for the win and got to 8-0 in the MAAC for the sixth consecutive season.
The game was close right out of the gate as Marist trailed 6-4 just three and a half minutes into the game, but responded with a an 8-0 run to take the lead for good. Beynnon hit her third bucked of the game, scoring the first six Marist points, to start the run. Gang then hit a pair of free throws and, after Dulin went 1-2 from the charity stripe, drained a three-pointer to give the Red Foxes a 12-6 advantage and for Loyola to take a timeout.
After a Greyhounds' layup, Beynnon started another Marist streak, hitting a trey of her own. Dulin followed with a three-point play to give the Red Foxes a double-digit lead at 20-8 with 9:50 left in the first half.
Loyola began to get hot from three-point range however, as their next four field goals came from downtown, including three from freshman Kara Marshall, to cut into the Red Foxes' lead and bring the score to 26-21 with four minutes remaining.
Corielle Yarde (Reading, Pa.) hit three layups, surrounding an Ockenden three-pointer, in the final four minutes of the half to send the Red Foxes into the locker room at the break leading 35-26.
Marist maintained a comfortable lead in the second half, until Loyola went on their run in the final minutes.
The Red Foxes will conclude their homestand on Monday as Saint Peter's comes to Poughkeepsie for a 7 p.m. game. The team will be on the road for the next the
Notes - The two teams will meet again in the regular season finale in Baltimore on Feb. 26... Friday was a rematch of the 2011 MAAC Championship game, which The Red Foxes won 63-45... Marist is currently on a 32-game winning streak against MAAC opponents, and have won 25 straight conference games at home... Marist is 29-12 all-time against Loyola and Head Coach Brian Giorgis is 20-3 in his career against the Greyhounds.
