PHILADEPHIA, Pennsylvania – The Marist women's basketball team defeated defending Colonial Athletic Association champion Drexel in its season opener, 52-50, on Tuesday.
 
With the score tied at 50, Zaria DeMember-Shazer's layup with 12 seconds remaining proved to be the game-winner.
 

Summary

• A three-point play by Kiara Fisher at the 7:48 mark of the first quarter gave Marist a 5-4 lead, and the Red Foxes never trailed the rest of the game.
• Marist held Drexel scoreless for two separate stretches of over three minutes of the first quarter, and a final-minute three-pointer by Julianna Bonilla staked the Red Foxes to a 15-11 lead after 10 minutes.
• Marist led throughout the second quarter, and built its advantage to as large as six. Two free throws by Kendall Krick in the waning seconds gave Marist a 27-22 halftime lead.
• Drexel climbed to within one in the third quarter, but a pair of three-pointers by Bonilla staked Marist to its largest lead at 36-29 after 30 minutes.
• Tessa Brugler's two free throws tied the score with 20 seconds remaining, but the Red Foxes got the game-winning basket on their next possession on DeMember-Shazer's layup.

 

Stats

• Marist led for 35:56 of game time.
• Bonilla led all scorers with 16 points in 24 minutes off the bench. Fisher and DeMember-Shazer added 11.
• DeMember-Shazer led the Red Foxes with 10 rebounds.
• Krick led Marist with four assists.
• Marist shot 6-for-15 (.400) from three-point range, while Drexel was 3-for-14 (.214).
• Brugler had a game-high 14 rebounds to go along with 12 points.
• Preseason First Team All-Colonial Athletic Association selections Hannah Nihill and Keishana Washington scored 14 and 11 points, respectively. However, the Red Foxes held them to a combined 11-for-36 shooting (6-for-18 for Nihill, 5-for-18 for Washington).

 

Notes

• Drexel won the CAA last season, and is Preseason co-favorite this year. The Dragons entered the contest ranked 13^th in the CollegeInsider.com Women's Mid-Major Top 25 Poll.
• Marist has now won four straight season openers, all of which have occurred on the road.
• Marist's starting lineup of Fisher, Emma Wax, Krick, DeMember-Shazer, and Samantha Bailey had combined for nine collegiate starts entering Tuesday's game.
• Bonilla's 16 points were a career high. DeMember-Shazer's 10 rebounds were a career high as she recorded her first collegiate double-double. Krick's four assists were a career high. Fisher's 11 points tied a career high.

 

From Coach Giorgis

"It's one of the best wins we've ever had," Marist head coach Brian Giorgis told the Red Fox Network's Geoff Brault following the game. "We did it on the defensive end. We got great play from Julianna Bonilla off the bench. … Everyone stepped up; I'm really proud of them. To beat a team of that caliber is really unbelievable."
 

Up Next

• Marist plays its home opener on Friday at 7 p.m. against American.
• Tickets are available on MaristTickets.com, and the game will be broadcast on ESPN3.
• American is coached by former Marist assistant & associate head coach Megan Gebbia, who coached under Brian Giorgis from 2003-13 and helped the Red Foxes win nine MAAC championships. Former Red Foxes Nikki Flores (2004-08) and Emily Stallings (2008-12) are assistant coaches on Gebbia's staff.