HAMDEN, Connecticut – The Marist women's basketball team led for most of the game but in the end dropped its first league game to the Quinnipiac Bobcats, 62-56, Thursday morning in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference action. The loss moves the Red Foxes to 3-1 (7-9 overall) while Quinnipiac remains undefeated in league play, pushing its record to 5-0 and 11-5 overall.

SUMMARY

The Red Foxes would start the game on an 8-0 run spurred on by their defense. Marist would hold Quinnipiac scoreless for first five minutes of the game and 2-for-18 shooting in the first overall.
 
Quinnipiac would nearly pull ahead in the second as back-to-back triples from got them to within one halfway through the period. A 7-0 run sparked by a Rebekah Hand three put the Red Foxes back up eight and in control but Quinnipiac would fight back again and cut the deficit to three by halftime.
 
The teams would trade baskets and stops throughout the third quarter. Quinnipiac would pull ahead by one, 44-43, on a last-second shot by Jen Fay to cap an 8-1 run for the Bobcats.
 
Hannah Hand's corner three with just over five minutes to go tied the game at 50 and was the Red Foxes' first FG since 3:27 in the third. Quinnipiac would respond with a triple of their own, but five straight points from Alana Gilmer would regain the lead for Marist at 55-53 w/ 2:56 to go.
 
The Bobcats would take back control on free throws and offensive rebounds, earning three boards in the offensive end in the final three minutes to extend their offensive possessions and hold on to the lead for good.

KEY STATS

• Rebekah Hand led the way on the offensive end with 18 points on 7-for-14 shooting in 36 minutes of action.
• Grace Vander Weide, on triple-double watch for most of the second half, put up 10 points, pulled down nine rebounds, and dished out eight assists.
• Alana Gilmer was the Red Foxes third scorer in double-digits as she tallied 14 points to go along with five rebounds.
• The Red Foxes would lead for 27:20 of the game with the scored tied for 3:40. Quinnipiac held the lead for nine minutes.
• Both defenses would be stout throughout as Marist finished the game 23-for-64 (.359) from the field and Quinnipiac would finish shooting 19-for-51 (.373).

QUOTE
"A really tough loss but the major thing that we took out of it is that we can play with these guys and that if we continue to work on our defense and other things we can be very successful in the league this year." – Head coach Brian Giorgis

UP NEXT
The Red Foxes will head home and face a quick turnaround as the team will host Fairfield Saturday night at McCann Arena. Tipoff is scheduled for 4 p.m. and tickets are available on MaristTickets.com.