KINGS POINT, N.Y. – Career highs from Julie Debrocky (Mahopac, N.Y./Mahopac) and Esther Ramos (Queens, N.Y./Forest Hills) accounted for 50 of the Manhattanville University women's basketball team's 66 points, but the pair of efforts was not enough for the Valiants to escape Liebertz Gymnasium with a win on Wednesday night, falling to USMMA 73-66 in overtime. Manhattanville sees their four-game winning streak to open the year come to an end, falling to 4-1 overall at 2-1 in Skyline Conference play, with the Mariners improving to 5-1 (4-0 Skyline).

USMMA outscored Manhattanville 11-4 in the overtime period to hand the Valiants their first loss of the season. Manhattanville was limited to 1-for-6 on field goal attempts in OT, going 0-for-4 from deep. It was the Valiants' first overtime game since Jan. 2023, another meeting between the Valiants and Mariners that saw USMMA leave Purchase with a 59-49 win.

Debrocky put up 26 points to lead all scorers on the night, going 10-for-17 from the floor. The junior drilled four shots from beyond the arc and dished out a team-leading four assists to go with three rebounds and a block.

Ramos posted her second double-double of the season, also setting a career-high with 24 points while finishing with 11 rebounds. Her 6-for-6 effort at the free throw line paced Manhattanville's 11-for-12 performance as a team.

Kathleen O'Mara (Huntington, N.Y./Walt Whitman) finished second to Ramos in boards with eight rebounds for Manhattanville, pulling down three offensive caroms. The freshman's pair of steals led the Valiants while adding three assists and a pair of blocks. Gabby Tucker (Port Chester, N.Y./Blind Brook) also dished out three assists, while Niyona Smith (Baltimore, MD/Concordia Prep) pulled down six rebounds while blocking a team-best four shots.

The Valiants had a chance to win the game at the end of regulation, pulling down a defensive rebound  and calling timeout with 10 seconds left to play. Manhattanville drove the ball down the floor but had a pass intercepted before putting a shot up. USMMA had their own chance going the other way but Emily Grasseler's jumper was off target at the buzzer to send the game to overtime. Grasseler broke a 66-66 tie in the extra period to begin the Mariners' 7-0 run to close out the game, defeating the Valiants for the third-straight meeting at Kings Point.

Manhattanville opened the game with a 7-2 lead in a quarter that saw the point production solely come via Debrocky and Ramos. The Mariners took over for the next seven minutes, outscoring the Valiants 14-3 to take a 16-10 advantage at the first break.

The Valiants came back to life in the second quarter, shooting a game-best 60 percent from the floor. Ramos and Debrocky continued to pour it in, putting up 18 of the Valiants' 21 points of the quarter. The Mariners had the lead up to a seven point margin with five minutes left in the half before Manhattanville closed on an 11-4 run to tie the game at the half at 31-31. Ramos accounted for the final basket of th half with a three ball with 26 seconds left, her 14^th point of the half to match Debrocky's game high through 20 minutes.

The home side reclaimed the lead in the third, opening the half on an 11-3 run to take an eight point lead, the largest advantage of the contest. Manhattanville chopped into the deficit in the closing minute with a Debrocky three and pair of Madison Carlo (Carmel, N.Y./Kennedy Catholic) free throws making it a one score game, but Kaira Winston hit a layup in the closing seconds to keep USMMA in front 53-48 to enter the fourth.

A 12-2 Manhattanville run to begin the fourth gave the Valiants their first lead since 1:21 remained in the first quarter, but the visitors were unable to build upon the five point lead as USMMA came back to tie things up on Carolae Barton's jumper with 65 seconds remaining in regulation before picking up the win in overtime.

Up Next
The Valiants aim to bounce back on Saturday to begin a five-game home stretch, welcoming Sarah Lawrence to Kennedy Gymnasium for a Skyline clash at 1 p.m.

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