PURCHASE, N.Y.- After having to sit out the past five games with an elbow injury, junior Ashley Raaf (Rockaway Beach, N.Y./Christ The King) returned to the Valiant lineup, scoring 15 points off the bench on Saturday afternoon in a 68-65 loss to King's College (Pa.) in Freedom Conference play.
 
Manhattanville (10-11, 1-9 Freedom) and King's (Pa.) (9-12, 5-5 Freedom) played a close contest for majority of the afternoon, seeing six leads each and nine total ties. For the Valiants, senior Alyson Caiazzo (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Saviour) led the way with a game-high 22 points and 14 rebounds. The 22 points from Caiazzo now puts her ninth all-time in points for Manhattanville women's basketball. Raaf helped spark Manhattanville off the bench in her return, scoring 15 points while shooting 50 percent (6-12) from the floor. 
 
The Monarchs had three players finish in double-figures, including a team-high 16 points from Olivia Hoffman. King's (Pa.) heckled the Valiants on the glass, outrebounding Manhattanville 45 to 36, grabbing 20 offensive boards, creating 15 second chance points.
 
Despite the Monarchs jumping out to an early 6-2 lead, the Valiants battled consistently to keep the contest close throughout. Down 6-2 at the 17:52 mark, the Valiants utilized an 8-2 run to take a 10-8 lead with just under 15 minutes left to play in the first. Manhattanville continued to use good looks inside the paint to build off its lead. After a layup from Caiazzo at the 5:54 mark, the Valiants controlled a five-point lead, 19-14. King's (Pa.) battled back, jumping out on a 13-2 run over the next four minutes, taking a 27-21 lead with two minutes left in the first half. The Valiants chipped away at their six-point deficit, going into halftime trailing the Monarchs 29-27.
 
Both teams were neck and neck for majority of the second half, keeping the game close with neither side able to pull away. With five minutes gone by, the Valiants took a three-point lead over the Monarchs, 36-33. King's (Pa.) was able to create another run on the Valiants, outscoring Manhattanville 10-2 for the next three minutes, taking a 43-38 lead at the 12:09 mark. Before pulling the game back within two, the Monarchs ended up taking their biggest lead of the day at seven points with 8:37 remaining in the contest. A 9-0 run from the Valiants gave them back a lead as Manhattanville went up 53-51 after two made free throws from sophomore Sarah Kelley (Ewing, N.J./Ewing) with under seven minutes left. The remainder of the game saw two ties and two lead changes before it was all notched up at 65 with 35 seconds left. A three-pointer from Kasey Seitz at the 12-second mark paved the way for King's (Pa.), as the Valiants were unable to answer on their final possession, falling by a final score of 68-65.
 
The Valiants will travel to take on #1 FDU-Florham in Freedom Conference play on Wednesday at 6 p.m. Live stats are available via GoValiants.com.