NEWBURGH, N.Y. – Led by
Julianna Kascic's (North Bergen, N.J./Paramus Catholic) career-high of 31 points and another shutdown defensive performance, the Manhattanville College women's basketball team remained undefeated on the season with a 63-42 win at Skyline rival Mount Saint Mary. The Valiants are now 7-0 on the season and 5-0 in conference play following the conclusion of their final game stateside in 2023.
In a young season of impressive performances, Kascic put together her best on Tuesday night as she hit 14 field goals alongside three free throws to post her new career-high, surpassing her previous best of 29 from last season's matchup against Saint Joseph's Brooklyn. Kascic set up shop under the glass as she pulled down 10 offensive rebounds as part of her 16 board night to generate multiple second chances as she notched double-double No. 5 for the year.
Niyona Smith (Baltimore, MD/Concordia Prep) was also a force off the glass as she finished with 10 rebounds, adding seven offensive caroms of her own. The junior forward added eight points, finishing one behind
Amanda Orlando (Putnam Valley, N.Y./Putnam Valley) and
Gabby Tucker (Port Chester, N.Y./Blind Brook) who each put up nine points. Orlando added four steals, four rebounds and a pair of assists, while Tucker earned seven boards, three steals and a pair of blocks.
Kristen Scrobola (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y./Walter Panas High School) collected seven rebounds, her highest total since grabbing eight against Yeshiva last December while playing a season-high 27 minutes.
Entering the night with at least four three pointers per game, the Valiants were silenced from beyond the arc, shooting 0-for-14 from deep. Despite it being the first game without hitting a three-pointer since 2018, the Valiants were content to do their damage from close with 28 field goals. The Knights, meanwhile, were held to a season-low in points, a common trend against Manhattanville's defensive gameplan that has been successful in shutting down opposing offenses. The Valiants ranked number one in the nation in scoring defense with 40.8 points allowed per game, containing a Knights team that entered the night leading the Skyline in scoring.
It would be the home team that built up the first substantial lead of the game as after the teams traded opening baskets, Mount Saint Mary scored 12 unanswered points to go up 14-2 through the opening 4:40. Kascic's first basket of the night stopped the run as she would account for five of Manhattanville's nine points of the opening quarter. The Valiants would chip away at the lead as Orlando's jumper at 1:50 would be the final basket of the first to move the score to 16-9 in favor of MSMC.
After shooting just 18 percent in the first, the Valiant offense took over with a 43 percent clip from the floor. With the Knights still up seven following a Shannon Phelan three with 8:19 left in the half, Manhattanville went on an 8-0 run to take their first lead of the game, 22-21. While Ciarra Quinn was able to temporarily swing the advantage back over to the Knights, the Valiants went on another run with four straight baskets to go up 30-23 with 43 seconds left in the half. Brianna Guglielmo drew a foul in MSMC's final trip down the court of the half and hit on both free throws to cut Manhattanville's lead down to five through 20 minutes, 30-25.
Manhattanville continued the gameplan in the third as they were content to take short-range jumpers and layups while holding the Knights to a 1-for-10 mark from the field. Mount Saint Mary scored the first points of the half on a pair of Charlotte Twohig free throws but it would be the Valiants going on a 15-1 run to take control, up 45-28 with 3:20 left in the quarter. The Valiant lead would peak at 19 as the Knights' only offense outside of a lone Angelina Donato jumper would be limited to production at the charity stripe. Mount Saint Mary closed out the quarter with the final four points, all via free throw, to head into the fourth with the Valiants up 49-34.
Manhattanville closed out the win by holding the Knights to just eight points over the final ten minutes. Mount Saint Mary was unable to get into any rhythm against Manhattanville's defensive play as they would be unable to close the gap any further than a 13-point deficit. After the Knights scored six straight points, the Valiants slammed the door shut with a 10-0 run that brought the score to 63-20 with 1:51 remaining. A lone layup would be all the Knights could muster over the remainder of regulation as Manhattanville picked up the 63-42 win.
Up Next
The Valiants will conclude the first half of the season next week in Puerto Rico, opening up the two-day tournament against a nationally-ranked Wisconsin-Whitewater squad. Tip is scheduled for 4 p.m. EST on Monday.
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