Queens Holds Off Women's Basketball, 72-69; Murrer Claims New Program Record With 17 Free Throws
Box Score
BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Jan. 31, 2009) – Senior forward Whitney Murrer (Richmond, Va.) scored a game-high 23 points, including a program-record 17 from the charity stripe, but it was not enough as the C.W. Post Pioneers were edged out by Queens College, 72-69, in a Saturday afternoon East Coast Conference women's basketball clash at the Pratt Recreation Center.
With the win, the Knights improve to 14-5 overall and 8-2 in conference play. The loss drops the Pioneers to 7-10 overall and 5-5 in the ECC.
Queens finished the game shooting .412 (21 of 51) from the floor and held a 50-33 advantage in rebounds. C.W. Post completed the game shooting .311 (19 of 61) from field goal range and went 27-for-37 at the charity stripe.
Murrer's 17 free throws clipped the previous record of 14 previously held by Patrice Walker in a game against Hofstra during the 1979-80 season. Ten of Murrer's free throws were made in the second half.
Senior forward Jennifer DiChiara led the Knights with 22 points and 15 rebounds along with three defensive blocks while teammate Amanda Bartlett added 20 toward the cause.
The first half displayed an offensive burst from the Knights as they poured in 11 of 21 field goals and went 9-for-11 at the free throw line. Queens held a 10 point lead (26-16) in the first half with 7:03 to play before the Pioneers chipped away, beginning with a layup from Murrer at 6:43 followed by a three-pointer from freshman forward Noelle Pawlicki (Staten Island, N.Y.) at 5:52.
C.W. Post took a brief lead with 10 seconds on the clock after a layup from junior guard Chantee Hallett (Bronx, N.Y.). Queens' Amanda Bartlett closed out the half converting two free throws to give the Knights a 36-35 lead.
The teams kept the score close through much of the second half. Pawlicki swished a trey for the first C.W. Post field goal of the half at 19:11 that tied the game at 38-all. Junior guard Jasmine Moore (Bronx, N.Y.) nailed a short jumper that gave the Pioneers the lead.
Queens tied the game up (43-43) with a jumper from DiChiara at 15:42 and Bartlett followed up with a three-pointer at 13:00, giving the visiting Knights the lead for the remainder of the game.
C.W. Post remained a threat in the final minutes and came as close as one point (59-58) after freshman guard Felicia Joyner (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) converted two free throws with 5:42 left on the clock.
Moore finished the game with 18 points and added four assists and four steals. Pawlicki finished the game with 15 points with three assists and three steals.
C.W. Post will return to action on the road at St. Thomas Aquinas on Feb. 4 at 5:30 p.m.