NEWBURGH, N.Y. – It was a far cry from how the Manhattanville University women's basketball team had hoped to begin the final week of the regular season as the Valiants were up in Newburgh on Wednesday night to take on Mount Saint Mary College. With sole possession of second place in the conference up for grabs, a nightmare second quarter put the Valiants into too steep of a hole for Manhattanville to fight back from, falling to the Knights, 72-45.
Manhattanville (17-6, 14-5) saw its six-game winning streak come to an end as Mount Saint Mary (15-9, 15-4) dominated in the second quarter, outscoring the Valiants 24-4. The Knights shot 69 percent to take control in a quarter when the Valiants went just 2-for-15 (13 percent), shooting 0-for-8 from deep as the Mount firmly pulled away at the close of the first half. Mount Saint Mary finished the night 29-of-58 from the field, with the 50 percent field goal rate the highest any team has recorded against the Valiants this season.
Esther Ramos (Queens, N.Y./Forest Hills) was the only Valiant to find a modicum of offensive success as the junior scored 16 on a 50 percent shooting night. Ramos drilled a pair of shots from three-point land and came down with four rebounds.
Niyona Smith (Baltimore, MD/Concordia Prep) finished with eight points, while
Julie Debrocky (Mahopac, N.Y./Mahopac) and
Amanda Orlando (Putnam Valley, N.Y./Putnam Valley) were limited to six each.
The Valiants were outrebounded 41-31. Smith and Debrocky led Manhattanville's effort with five rebounds apiece, whole Ramos, Orlando and
Kathleen O'Mara (Huntington, N.Y./Walt Whitman) each came down with four boards.
The night got off to a sour start as Skyline Co-Player of the Week
Gabby Tucker (Port Chester, N.Y./Blind Brook) was forced out of the game due to injury with 2:43 left in the first quarter. The junior guard did not return after her opening seven minutes of play, scoring a basket with a rebound and a steal prior to her early exit.
Defense had the upper hand early as both teams were scoreless through the first two and a half minutes. Brianna Guglielmo broke the ice with a layup and-one before the Valiants got on the board with a Debrocky free throw and Ramos layup. That would be Manhattanville's last basket for the next three minutes as the Knights went on an 8-0 to take a lead that never left the home team's side. Debrocky got the Valiants back within six with her second bucket of the quarter, the last by either team for two minutes. Orlando resumed the scoring with a layup to get Manhattanville back within four, the closest the Valiants would get over the course of the night. Lauren Petrie hit a three for the home squad before Smith went 1-for-2 at the free throw line to end the first with the Knights up 16-10.
The Knights opened their explosive second quarter on a 7-0 run over the first 4:05 before
Cascia Sandoval (San Antonio, Texas/Harlandale) connected for Manhattanville's first field goal in close to six minutes. Mount Saint Mary responded with 14 unanswered points to erupt to a 37-12 lead. Ramos stopped the run with the Valiants' second and final field goal of the quarter, but Margaret Trinkaus capped off the Knights' dominant period with an old-fashioned three-point play to take a 40-14 lead into the half.
Manhattanville played its best basketball of the night in the third quarter, shooting 55 percent from the field and going 5-of-5 at the free throw line. However, it did little to dent into the deficit as Manhattanville only outscored the Knights 18-13 in the quarter. The Valiants could not keep up the shooting performance into the fourth, finishing the night with a .267 clip from the field over the final ten minutes with Mount Saint Mary holding a 19-13 scoring advantage in the final quarter.
Up Next
The Valiants close out the regular season on Saturday for Senior Day against Old Westbury at 1 p.m.
VALIANTS on SOCIAL MEDIA For the latest on Manhattanville Athletics, follow the Valiants via social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Threads and YouTube. #WeAreValiant #GoValiants
