PURCHASE, N.Y. – The Manhattanville College women's basketball team bounced back from last weekend's loss in Wednesday's return to the court, defeating Bryant & Stratton by a final of 63-51. The win concludes the Valiants' non-conference schedule as the team improves to 11-2 on the year.

Manhattanville received a pair of double-doubles from Julianna Kascic (North Bergen, N.J./Paramus Catholic) and Niyona Smith (Baltimore, MD/Concordia Prep) as the team's leading efforts in the win. The senior Kasic put up 15 points while nabbing 15 rebounds to post her second-straight double-double and her eighth of the season. Smith, meanwhile, earned her second double-double of her sophomore campaign with a team-leading 16 rebounds to go along with her 10 points. Smith would also add three blocked shots as part of a strong all-over effort.

Jamison Agostino (Stony Brook, N.Y./Ward Melville) matched Kascic's point total on the night as the team's scoring leaders. The junior did all of her damage from deep, connecting on five shots from beyond the arc. Wednesday's performance brings Agostino's three-pointers on the year to 49, etching her name into the program record book as the 10^th-highest single-season total. Amanda Orlando (Putnam Valley, N.Y./Putnam Valley) would also get involved in the scoring with 13 points, draining a season-high six field goals as the rookie has now reached double figures in three straight games. Orlando would also add eight rebounds to match her personal best.

The visiting Bobcats would hang tight with the Valiants throughout the first half as Manhattanville once again struggled at the free throw line. After going 12-for-28 at the charity stripe in Saturday's loss to Mount Saint Mary, the Valiants would hit just one of their 13 free throws in the first half. While the team fared much better in the second half with a .529 free throw percentage (9-of-17), the .333 effort from the line matches the team's lowest success rate this season.

The slow start for the Valiants allowed Bryant & Stratton to bounce back from Manhattanville's opening 5-0 run to take an 11-7 lead with 4:18 left in the opening quarter. The Valiants would respond with another five straight points to jump back ahead with two minutes to play. The Bobcats would even the score up at 12-12 before Smith connected on a jumper to close out the quarter with a two-point lead for the home team.

Manhattanville would outscore the Bobcats 14-8 in the second quarter to put some space between the teams. Smith and Orlando hit back-to-back layups to begin the quarter. The Bobcats would close the gap to pull back within two before Kascic and Agostino would combine for the only five points scored in a four minute span. Agostino's three ball would give the Valiants a seven-point lead with 3:45 to play in the half, 23-16. Another 5-0 run by Manhattanville put the home team ahead by double-figures for the first time in the contest, leading 28-18 with 1:36 remaining. Bryant & Stratton would hit a pair of free throws to end the half with the Valiants up 28-20.

The Valiants shot a game-best 44 percent in the third, with Agostino hitting a three on the team's first shot of the half. Manhattanville would go on a 9-0 run midway through the frame to begin pulling away with a 42-25 lead. Still, the Bobcats refused to go away quietly. The visiting team would nail a pair of threes in the final 21 seconds of the quarter to cut into the Valiant lead, heading into the fourth with Manhatanville ahead 48-38.

As the Bobcats attempted to mount a comeback effort, the Valiants would keep their composure to close out the win. Bryant & Stratton would pull within single digits four times over the final ten minutes, but the home team had a response bucket ready to go to keep the Bobcats at bay. Nursing an eight-point lead with less than three minutes to play, Manhattanville went on a 6-0 run to put the game on ice with Agostino hitting her fifth shot from deep to account for the team's final basket on the night.

Up Next
The Valiants will now get set for ten straight Skyline Conference games to wrap up the regular season. The road to the postseason begin on Saturday as the Valiants host Saint Joseph's-Long Island at 2 p.m.

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