BOSTON, Mass. - Emerson College's Olivia DiNucci (Pittsburgh, PA) hit three free throws with 21 seconds remaining in regulation to force overtime, but Emerson managed only five points in the extra session as the Lady Falcons capped a 16 point second half rally with an 83-80 Great Northeast Athletic Conference victory at Emerson College.
Emerson controlled the majority of the contest a 15 point lead with 7:27 remaining in the game. Albertus began to chip away on a jump shot by junior center Kendrae Walker (New Haven, CT). Sophomore forward Andrea Kosek (Latham, NY) hit a free throw to move the lead back to 12 until sophomore guard Elizabeth Williams (New Haven, CT) answered with a jumper to cut the lead to 10.
Walker stole the ball on the ensuing Emerson possession and freshman guard Shanilya Bush (New Haven, CT) converted a layup to pull the Falcons to within eight points with 5:15 remaining. Following an Emerson miss, Walker was fouled and sank both free throws to bring the Lady Falcons to within six points. A Walker defensive rebound followed by two made free-throws made the score 68-64. Senior forward Kendra Dowen's (Montpelier, VT) layup at three minutes and a Dowen three pointer at 2:23 forged the first tied the game at 69-69. Dowen would go on to make a layup to give the Falcons a 73-69 lead.
Freshman guard Amy Sherman (Toronto, Ontario) drove for a layup and converted a traditional three-point play for the Lions to bring Emerson within one point with 50 seconds remaining in regulation. Dowen would then convert a layup at the 0:34 mark, setting the stage for DiNucci's clutch free throws to send the game into overtime.
Sophomore forward Katelyn White (Enfield, CT) gave Albertus Magnus a 77-75 advantage 1:23 into the extra period. Zaniboni converted a layup to knot the contest for the fourth time, and hit two free throws to give Emerson a 79-77 lead at the 1:57 mark.
Two Williams free throws tied the score with 48 seconds left and following an Emerson turnover, sophomore guard Shay Anderson (Hamden, CT) nailed a jumper for an 82-80 Falcon lead. Zaniboni was fouled on the next possession and hit both free throws, but Emerson was called for a lane violation on the second which voided the point and left the Lions staring at a n 81-80 deficit. Emerson fouled immediately on the inbounds play and Williams dropped two more foul shots with five second remaining. A desperation three by Emerson at the buzzer missed the mark.
Walker led the Falcons with a game high 30 points despite fouling out at the end of regulation. Dowen had 17 and Bush added 11. Zaniboni had a double-double for Emerson with 28 points and 15 rebounds. DiNucci added 20 points, and junior forward Kathy Andreade (Hull, Mass.) tallied 11.
Albertus Magnus improves to 9-12, 5-3 GNAC while Emerson drops to 11-10, 6-2 GNAC. The Lady Falcons travel to Simmons College on Tuesday for a 7:00 pm tip-off.
