Link: Box Score

New Haven, Conn. - The Albertus Magnus College women's basketball team closed out the 2018-19 regular season with a thrilling 68-62 win over Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) foe Suffolk University Saturday afternoon on Senior Day at "The Nest" inside the Cosgrove Marcus Messer Athletic Center.

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Albertus Magnus College 68 | Suffolk University 62
RECORDS: Albertus Magnus (22-3, 10-2) | Suffolk (18-7, 9-3)
ALL-SERIES RECORDS: Albertus snapped a nine-game losing streak and cuts the all-time series record to 18-8 against Suffolk. The Falcons' last win against the Rams was back on February 20, 2010 as Albertus won on the road by a score of 82-70.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Following tonight's 15-point performance, junior Shyla Osmond (New Haven, Conn.) is now 21 points away from scoring her 1,000th career point. She will be the 15th player in program history to hit this milestone.
• Albertus enters the GNAC Tournament with an undefeated record at home, 11-0.
• Junior Rah Rah Thompson (Bridgeport, Conn.) set a new career-high in rebounds with 25, including 12 offensive and a season-high 13 defensive rebounds.
• Thompson also recorded her 18th double-double of the season. 

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half:

• Suffolk stormed ahead early on as it held the Falcons over a 4:15 stretch in the opening quarter to build a 10-point lead, 21-11, after the first 10 minutes of play.
• The second quarter is when things got heated as Albertus outshot the Rams by a 16-12 edge and managed to battle back to within four on two occassions. 
• With six seconds left before the break Natalie Fraioli converted on a pair of free throws to send Suffolk into the break ahead by six, 33-27.  

 Second Half:

• Albertus Magnus ran together a 10-2 spurt to get the third quarter going and take its first lead, 37-35, since the 8:20 mark in the first quarter. 
• Back-and-forth action wrapped up play in the third quarter, which Suffolk ended ahead by two, 44-42.   
• The Falcons flew into the fourth quarter on a 13-2 run that put the Rams in an eight-point hole, 55-47, with 6:42 remaining.
• Albertus gained the three-point advantage, 63-60, on a three from Emma Pierson (Branford, Conn.) with just under three minutes to go.
• The Rams were unable to respond to the Pierson bucket and went down by seven, 67-60, with 1:57 left on the clock.
• Suffolk battled back to within five, 67-62, at the 1:16 mark, but it would not be enough as Albertus hit a free throw to secure the conference clash.

KEY PERFORMANCES
Albertus:

• Rah Rah Thompson – 26 Points (10-19 FG, 1-2 3PT, 5-11 FT) | 25 rebounds | 1 assist | 1 steal | 3 blocks
• Shyla Osmond – 15 Points (6-11 FG, 1-2 3PT, 2-2 FT) | 3 rebounds | 5 assists | 2 steals
• Jill Johnson (North Haven, Conn.) – 11 Points (3-8 FG, 2-2 FT) | 5 assists | 1 steal

Suffolk:

• Marissa Gudauskas – 15 Points | 6 rebounds | 3 assists | 1 block
• Jordan Hipwell – 13 Points | 3 rebounds | 1 block
• Jenni-Rose Dicecco – 11 points | 10 rebounds | 6 assists | 1 steal
• Emily Welling –6 points | 9 rebounds | 4 blocks

UP NEXT
The Falcons earn the third-seed in the upcoming conference tournament and will face Regis (Mass.) on Tuesday, February 19 in New Haven, Conn. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. This will be the Falcons' 18th appearance in the tournament. 

Tuesday, February 19 - Quarterfinals
Game 1: #8 JWU at #1 Saint Joseph's (Maine) - 6:00 PM
Game 2: #5 Anna Maria at #4 Suffolk - 5:00 PM
Game 3: #6 Regis at #3 Albertus Magnus - 6:00 PM
Game 4: #7 Colby-Sawyer at #2 Emmanuel - 5:30 PM

Thursday, February 21 - Semifinals (at higher seeds)
Game 5: 4/5 winner vs. 1/8 winner
Game 6: 3/6 winner vs. 2/7 winner

Saturday, February 23 - Championship
Game 7: at highest remaining seed