RIVERDALE, N.Y. – In the first meeting of the season between two of the top teams in the Skyline Conference, the Manhattanville College women's basketball team won a thriller on the road at Mount Saint Vincent, 59-55. The Valiants improve to 12-3 overall and 9-1 in the Skyline.

Niyona Smith's (Baltimore, MD/Concordia Prep) double-double led the Valiants as she scored 13 points to go with her 10 rebounds. It was the junior's third double-double of the season, her first since Dec. 19 against Knox. Smith shot .545 on the night as she hit six field goals.

Hopefully breaking what has been a recent cold spell, Jamison Agostino (Stony Brook, N.Y./Ward Melville) returned to double figures after shooting 1-for-22 over her previous two games as she put up 10 against the Dolphins. The Valiants' deep threat hit a pair of shots from beyond the arc as part of her four field goal night. Her point total was matched by Amanda Orlando (Putnam Valley, N.Y./Putnam Valley), who has now reached double-figures in two straight games. The sophomore also added a pair of three-pointers.

Julianna Kascic (North Bergen, N.J./Paramus Catholic) continued to be a presence off the glass for Manhattanville with seven boards despite being contained offensively with four points. Livi Correia (North Attleboro, Mass./Worcester Academy) delivered nine points and did her heavy lifting at the free throw line, going 7-for-8 on the night.

Tied 55-55 with less than a minute to play, it was Esther Ramos (Queens, N.Y./Forest Hills) that stepped up to be the difference maker for Manhattanville. Going back down the court after Amber Been tied things up for Mount Saint Vincent, the sophomore gave the Valiants the lead with a layup with 36 seconds to play. The game continued to hang in the balance as both teams struggled to hit crucial free throws before Ramos was fouled out of desperation by the Dolphins with less than two seconds on the clock. The Queens, N.Y. native put the game on ice by draining both free throws to allow the Valiants to escape Riverdale with the 59-55 win.

With a game coming down to the closing seconds, it was unsurprisingly a tightly-fought battle between the two squads that entered the night in a three-way tie atop the conference standings. Manhattanville held a narrow advantage after the first quarter, although both offenses sputtered out of the gate. Mount Saint Vincent shot 3-of-13 from the field in the first ten minutes, but two of the field goals were good for three to allow the Dolphins to build up a 9-4 lead. The Valiants responded with eight unanswered points over the final 2:50 of the first to pull ahead 12-9.

After shooting 29 percent in the first quarter, the Valiants continued to struggle early with a .250 clip in the second. The Dolphins capitalized by going on a 7-0 run towards the end of the half, with Melanieann Broderick putting the home team up 24-18 with 1:49 left. The Valiants would half the deficit before heading to the locker room as Agostino hit a three-pointer with 46 seconds remaining.

The halftime break allowed the Valiants to find their footing offensively with Manhattanville shooting 50 percent to close out the contest. Coupled with a 7-for-8 mark at the free throw line in the third, the Valiants looked to take charge over the first ten minutes back on the court. Down 33-30 with 4:52 on the clock, Manhattanville scored seven straight points as part of a larger 14-6 run to close out the quarter. A three-pointer by Orlando and Agostino layup in the final minute had Manhattanville up 44-36, their largest lead of the night to that point.

Agostino's second three-pointer of the night with 7:14 left in regulation had the Valiants up 49-40. The Dolphins would come roaring back with a 13-4 run to tie things up at 53-53 with 2:09 to play. Smith and Been traded layups to set the stage for Ramos' late-game heroics.

Up Next
The Valiants return to action on Saturday to conclude their regular-season series against Saint Joseph's Long Island after defeating the Golden Eagles 56-46 back in December. Tip from Patchogue is scheduled for 1 p.m.

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