POUGHKEEPSIE, New York – Junior guard
Sarah Barcello had a team-high 13 points, senior captain
Willow Duffell and freshman forward
Zaria Demember-Shazer each posted 12 points, but Saint Peter's spoiled Marist's Senior Night with a 58-51 decision on Friday evening at McCann Arena.
The loss caps the Red Foxes' regular season at 15-3, with a MAAC-high 13 wins in conference play. The win clinches the third seed for the Peacocks in the upcoming MAAC Tournament, as they improve to 10-9 in the MAAC and 11-14 overall.
Marist outscored Saint Peter's 20-11 in the second quarter, and led by as much as 12 early in the third quarter. However, the Peacocks went on a 30-11 run over the game's final 17:05, limiting the Red Foxes to just five points in the fourth quarter.
In their final games at McCann Arena, Duffell also grabbed a team-best seven rebounds, while classmate and co-captain
Allie Best dished out six assists.
Taiah Thornton dropped a game-high 19 points, while Binta Salawu and Sky Castro notched 13 and 10 points, respectively.
- DeMember-Shazer had four of Marist's first nine points on an 18-footer and a contested baseline jumper.
- Saint Peter's rattled off a 10-0 run over a span of over four-and-a-half minutes to take a 15-10 lead.
- Down 18-12 early in the second, Barcello knocked down two consecutive three-pointers to tie the game, starting a 13-2 spurt for the Red Foxes.
- Marist went ahead when Demember-Shazer converted a layup with contact. Sophomore forward Samantha Bailey corralled an offensive rebound on the foul shot, leading to a corner triple from junior guard Kendall Krick.
- The Peacocks snapped the run and got to within 25-24, but freshman guard Anabel Ellison went coast-to-coast for two, then fed Kennedy on the right block for a layup to start another 7-0 Foxes run. Marist led 32-26 at halftime.
- Out of halftime, the Red Foxes went on an 8-2 run, punctuated after Ellison skated down the left side and found Barcello on the right block for a basket plus a foul, pushing Marist's lead to 40-28.
- Fueled by six points from Sky Castro, Saint Peter's rallied via a 14-2 burst, tying the game at 42 with 2:20 to play in the third quarter.
- Ajia James gave the Peacocks a 48-46 lead just 52 seconds into the fourth quarter.
- Krick tied the game at 49 with a reverse layup from right to left, but back-to-back threes from Jenna Clark and Tyara McQueen, the latter banking home as the shot clock went to zero, reclaimed Saint Peter's lead at 55-49 with 2:50 remaining.
- Marist shot 39 percent from the field, compared to 38 percent for Saint Peter's.
- The Red Foxes held advantages in assists (16-13) and points off turnovers (14-4).
- Ellison had five assists on the evening.
- The Peacocks sported a 41-30 edge on the glass, and had 28 points in the paint.
- James led all players with nine rebounds, while Thornton's five assists led the Peacocks.
- Marist held a lead for 22:40 of the game.
- The Red Foxes' winning streak at McCann Arena was snapped at 15 games. The run began on January 23rd, 2020, 407 days ago.
- Marist did not allow more than 61 points in a game all regular season, limiting opponents to 50.8 points per game. Only twice did the Red Foxes let a team shoot better than 40 percent.
- Demember-Shazer started for the first time in her career on Friday, scoring in double figures for the first time since January 22nd and fourth time this year.
- Duffell and Barcello notched their 33rd and 20th career games with 10 or more points.
- Best now has six games this year with six or more assists.
- The all-time series now favors Marist 37-18.
- Before the game, the program honored Best and Duffell with a Senior Night ceremony. The team gathered the cardboard cutouts of their friends and families for a group photo.
- Head Coach Brian Giorgis, Best, and Duffell met with the media following Friday's game.
- Marist, the No. 1 seed in the MAAC Championships, awaits the winner of No. 8 Niagara vs. No. 9 Siena for a MAAC Quarterfinal matchup on Wednesday, March 10th at Noon on ESPN+.
