NEW HAVEN, Conn. - The Albertus Magnus College women's basketball team reigned victorious on Wednesday night, defeating the AMCATS of Anna Maria College by a final score of 81-50 for its first win of the 2021-22 campaign and its first in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play.

Four different players scored in double digits for the Falcons, with Diamond White (Hamden, Conn.) and Jakara Murray-Leach (Norwalk, Conn.) leading the way with 21 and 20 points, respectively.

THE BASICS
Final: Albertus Magnus 81 | Anna Maria 50
Records: Albertus Magnus (1-6, 1-1 GNAC) | Anna Maria (2-6, 1-1 GNAC)
Box Score

HOW IT HAPPENED
Albertus came out of the gate hot as the Falcons opened regulation with an 11-point lead behind a 13-2 run that saw seven points from White and six points from Katherine Raposo (Warwick, R.I.). Anna Maria managed to battle back to within five on two occasions, but Albertus pushed its lead back up to nine, 22-13, behind a made free throw from Murray-Leach with 3:27 left in the opening quarter.

Anna Maria's defensive unit stepped up as the AMCATS held the Falcons scoreless and closed out the frame with a 4-0 run to cut the deficit to five, 22-17, heading into the second quarter.

Albertus picked up the pace to start the second, scoring six unanswered points to push its lead back-up to double digits, 28-17, three minutes into the frame. However, both defensive units stepped up from there, holding each other scoreless until the 5:00 minute mark following a made free throw from Anna Maria's Marinique Reddin.

Anna Maria fed off of Reddin's free throw by putting together a short spurt to cut the deficit to eight, but a deep three from Caitlyn Scott (White Plains, N.Y.) and a layup from Sharaya Keele (Adams, Mass.) increased the Falcons' lead to 13, 35-22, with 2:18 left on the clock. The remaining time saw the Falcons and AMCATS trade baskets, with the Falcons leading at the half by 12, 38-26.

Like the opening quarter, Albertus came out soaring to start the third, putting together a 13-3 run, highlighted by eight points from Murray-Leach, to increase its lead to 22, 51-29, with four minutes gone. A basket from Anna Maria's Julitza Delgado broke up the run and lit a spark for the visitors as they found themselves trailing 60-40 at the 2:24 mark.

Despite Anna Maria's intensity on offense, Albertus maintained its composure and headed into the final 10 minutes of regulation with a 67-43 lead.

The final quarter was different from the rest as Albertus was held to only two points over the first four minutes of play. However, Albertus and Anna Maria began to pick up speed when Amanda Zdru (Stratford, Conn.) hit a deep three at the 6:28 mark before Chloe Giordano from Anna Maria countered it with a trey of her own 17 seconds later.

Albertus continued to build momentum off of every made basket and never looked back, taking down the AMCATS at home by a final score of 81-50 for its first victory of the season.

TEAM STATS
Albertus: 43.5 % FG | 33.3 % 3PT | 52.2 % FT
Anna Maria: 25.7 % FG | 19.2 % 3PT | 60.0 % FT

KEY PERFORMERS
Albertus:
Diamond White - 21 points (8-20 FG, 2-9 3PT, 3-4 FT) | 3 rebounds | 3 assists | 3 steals
Jakara Murray-Leach - 20 points (7-13 FG, 3-7 3PT, 3-5 FT) | 10 rebounds | 1 assist | 6 steals
Caitlyn Scott - 14 points (5-12 FG, 1-3 3PT, 3-6 FT) | 4 rebounds | 3 assists | 2 steals
Katherine Raposo - 11 points (3-10 FG, 2-4 3PT, 3-4 FT) | 10 rebounds | 7 assists | 1 steal 

Anna Maria:
Martinique Reddin - 13 points (5-14 FG, 3-6 FT) | 9 rebounds | 2 assists | 1 steal | 1 block
Megan Burdett- 11 points (4-15 FG, 0-5 3PT, 3-4 FT) | 8 rebounds | 1 assist

NOTEWORTHY

• This is the 18th all-time meeting between the Falcons and AMCATS.
• Albertus extends its all-time series record to 14-4 following tonight's victory.
• The Falcons set a new season-high in steals with 16, including six from Murray-Leach.
• White set a new season-high with 21 points.
• Murray-Leach set a season-high with 20 points.

UP NEXT
The Falcons will continue their home stretch with a GNAC clash against the Raiders of Rivier University on Saturday, Dec. 11, inside the Cosgrove Marcus Messer Athletic Center. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.