GARDEN CITY, N.Y. – Led by a game-high 16 points and seven rebounds from graduate student Sasha Patterson, the LIU Post women's basketball team opened its season with a 53-45 triumph over Pace University Saturday afternoon inside the Center for Recreation and Sport.
 
Along with Patterson's 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting, senior Shannon Doyle added nine points, six rebounds and a game-high four assists for the Pioneers.  Freshman Ja'Lyn Armstrong and senior Mikaiya Moore gave LIU Post a boost off the bench as Armstrong contributed eight points, four rebounds, two assists and two blocks while Moore finished with six points, five rebounds, and two blocks.
 
LIU Post held Pace to just 28.3 percent shooting from field and 13.3 percent shooting from beyond the arc. The Pioneers also out-rebounded the Setters 45-41, recorded more assists 12-4 and tallied more blocks, 7-0. The Green and Gold held a 36-26 points in the paint advantage, finished with 19 points off turnovers to just 12 by Pace and had 12 second chance points to the Setters' five.
 
Pace led in the early stages of the first quarter a free throw by senior Taylah Hudson put LIU Post ahead 5-4 and they never looked back from there. A jump shot by sophomore Natalie Hickman from an assist by junior Dominique Williams gave the Pioneers a 16-13 lead to close out the first quarter.
 
A layup by senior Samantha Dunn at 6:29 in the second quarter keyed a 7-0 run that also featured a three-pointer by Doyle and a layup by redshirt junior Robyn Francis gave the Pioneers a 27-18 lead. The Pioneers maintained their advantage and went into halftime ahead 31-26.
 
At 8:14 in the third quarter Doyle found Hudson for a three-pointer that moved LIU Post's lead 34-26 but the Setters managed to reduce the deficit to four points with 1:54 on the clock.  The remainder of the quarter was a back-and-forth battle; Moore's layup at 1:04 saw the Pioneers take a 40-34 lead heading into the final quarter.
 
While the Setters reduced their deficit to just two points with 7:09 on the clock in the fourth quarter, Patterson showed why she was chosen as the ECC Preseason Player of the Year as she could not be contained inside. The Pioneers leaned on their graduate student leader down the stretch and she delivered 10 points in the quarter and made sure the Setters never took the lead. Moore sunk a pair of free throws with 31 seconds remaining and the game concluded with a final score of 53-45.
 
Up Next
The Pioneers take on Adelphi University (0-1) tomorrow at 4:00 p.m. inside the Center for Recreation and Sport.