NEW HAVEN, Conn. - Behind five double-digit scorers, including a team-high 13 points from Jakara Murray-Leach (Norwalk, Conn.), the Albertus Magnus College women's basketball team earned its fourth straight victory after defeating the Blazers of Elms College, for a second time this season, by a 71-61 final score Monday evening inside "The Nest".
THE BASICS
Final: Albertus Magnus 71 | Elms 61
Records: Albertus Magnus (8-8, 7-2 GNAC) | Elms (6-7, 3-7 GNAC )
Box Score
HOW IT HAPPENED
Elms controlled the opening three minutes of play as the visitors kicked off regulation with a 6-3 run, highlighted by four points from Angelica Peguero-Flores. However, a deep three from Caitlyn Scott (White Plains, N.Y.) at the 5:19 mark evened the game at 6-all.
Following the three from Scott, Albertus settled down offensively, rallying for a 9-2 run that gave the Falcons a seven-point advantage, 15-8, heading into the final 10 minutes of the first half.
Albertus carried its momentum into the second quarter, opening the stanza with a 12-5 run to extend its lead to 14, 27-13, forcing Elms to call a timeout following a three from Amanda Zdru (Stratford, Conn.). Out of the break, Albertus continued to press their advantage offensively as four points from Zdru and a three from Scott gave the hosts a 19-point cushion, 34-15, with 3:22 remaining in the frame.
With the clock ticking down, the Blazers' offense began to challenge the Falcons' defensive unit by making shots inside, but the hosts were not deterred as they headed into the halftime break with a 16-point lead, 40-24.
Elms wasted no time cutting the lead to single digits, 42-33, after opening the third quarter with a 9-2 run behind three 3-pointers from Rahmia Johnston. However, the Falcons rallied as a team, answering back with a 10-2 run, capped by a pair of free throws from Diamond White (Hamden, Conn.), to push its lead back up to 17, 52-35, with 3:16 left in the third.
Elms remained in the game despite the commanding lead, closing out the third quarter with a 10-6 run to bring the score to within 13, 58-45.
It was a defensive battle between the Falcons and Blazers, with both teams struggling to make a basket over the first two minutes of the fourth quarter. Shortly after, Elms began to find its stride offensively and found themselves trailing by just nine, 58-49, with 6:36 left on the clock, but a 6-0 burst by the Falcons pushed the score back up to 15, 64-49, and forced Elms to call a timeout.
Out of the break, the Blazers regrouped offensively by drawing the Falcons' double-digit lead to single digits over the remaining five minutes of play, but the visitors' comeback came up short in a 71-61 loss.
TEAM STATS
Albertus: 42.4% FG | 36.8% 3PT | 57.1% FT
Elms: 32.3% FG | 20% 3PT | 75% FT
KEY PERFORMERS
Albertus:
Jakara Murray-Leach - 13 points (6-17 FG, 1-8 3PT, 0-2 FT) | 3 rebounds | 5 assists | 2 steals
Diamond White - 12 points (4-9FG, 0-1 3PT, 4-5 FT) |2 rebounds | 3 assists | 3 steals
Caitlyn Scott - 12 points (5-14 FG, 2-3 3PT) | 4 rebounds | 5 assists | 1 steal
Amanda Zdru - 11 points (5-6 FG, 1-1 3PT) | 2 rebounds | 1 steal
Katherine Raposo (Warwick, R.I.) - 10 points (4-9 FG, 2-2 3PT) | 9 rebounds | 4 assists | 1 steal
Elms:
Angelica Peguero-Flores - 23 points (11-24 FG, 1-1 FT) | 14 rebounds | 2 blocks
Rahmia Johnston - 22 points (6-12 FG, 4-10 3PT, 6-8 FT) | 7 rebounds | 1 block
NOTEWORTHY
- Today's game marks the 12th all-time meeting between the Falcons and Blazers.
- After today's game, Albertus owns an 11-1 lead in the all-time series.
- The Falcons are riding a four-game win streak.
- For the fifth straight game, Murray-Leach led the Falcons in scoring.
- Scott has led the Falcons in assists in back-to-back games.
- Albertus set a new season-high in assists with 21.
- The Falcons scored 23 of their 71 points off turnovers.
- Both teams scored 32 points in the paint.
UP NEXT
The Falcons will continue their conference slate with a home clash against the Bulldogs of Dean College on Wednesday evening inside the Cosgrove Marcus Messer Athletic Center. Tip-off is set for 5:30 PM.
