Women's Basketball Rallies To Finish Off Bridgeport In Overtime, 77-72
Box Score
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (Feb. 4, 2012) – Graduate forward
Catherine Lutz (Easton, Pa.) swished a three-pointer with 1.7 seconds to play in regulation to rally C.W. Post to an eventual overtime win over the University of Bridgeport, 77-72, in an East Coast Conference women's basketball contest Saturday afternoon at Hubbell Gym.
C.W. Post improves to 16-7 overall and 7-4 in the ECC while Bridgeport slips to 7-14 overall and 5-6 in conference play.
Senior guard Felicia Joyner (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) scored a game-high 25 points on 10-20 shooting. Meanwhile junior center Samantha Kopp (Franklinville, N.Y.) scored nine points with seven rebounds and had five blocks in the first half. Junior forward Nicolette Marciniak (Brooklyn, N.Y.) grabbed 14 rebounds for the Pioneers.
Edna Marant led the Purple Knights with 25 points no 11-17 shooting, including 3-5 from behind the arc, and pulled down 11 rebounds for a double-double. Aziza Patterson added 20 points and Julia Colley had 13.
The Pioneers had held the lead in the game since the first half and built their advantage to 16 points (40-24) with 18:45 in the second half. But the Purple Knights improved their shooting percentage to 50 percent (18-36) in the half and used an 11-4 run beginning at 11:43 with a jumper from Tanisha Carter and finishing with a jumper from Julia Colley at 8:22 to take a 54-53 lead.
C.W. Post tied the game on a made free throw from Marciniak at 6:52 beforeUB's Marant scored on a jumper at 6:16 to reclaim the lead. The Pioneers regained the advantage with an unanswered jumper and three-pointer from Joyner (61-58). The Purple Knights returned fire with a three from Marant to tie the game. Marciniak sank 1 of 2 free throws to give the Pioneers the lead back at 4:28.
Trailing 64-63 with 56 seconds remaining in the game, Marant came through with a clutch three-pointer to give the Purple Knights the lead. Then Colley swished her first of two free throws with 21 seconds left in the game and it looked like the Purple Knights had rallied to win the game until Colley missed her second attempt and the Pioneers got the ball back on a defensive team rebound. After a timeout was called by head coach Deirdre Moore with 17 seconds on the game clock, C.W. Post came back out on the floor and burned 14 seconds on the clock before Lutz hit her clutch three to force the overtime.
In the extra frame, the Pioneers went ahead a pair of free throws from sophomore guard
Alexis Peters (Dorchester, Mass.) and proceeded to outscore the Purple Knights 8-2 to secure the win. Joyner scored five of the Pioneers' 10 points.
In the first half, the Pioneers allowed the Purple Knights to jump to a 6-0 head start before they found their rhythm and rallied for an 11-2 run to claim the lead. The visitors later pulled away in the final seven minutes of play with a 10-4 run and went to the locker room with a 35-24 lead.
Junior center Samantha Kopp (Franklinville, N.Y.) led the Pioneers in the first half with seven points and five blocks.
C.W. Post finished the game shooting .446 (29-65) from field goal range and was 13-25 at the free throw line. Bridgeport shot .408 (31-76) from the floor and was 7-17 at the line. The Purple Knights held a 49-47 advantage on the boards.
C.W. Post returns to action on Feb. 8 at home against Mercy College for a 5 p.m. tipoff.