Bridgeport, Conn. (March 2, 2007?Coming off a hard fought win over Niagara yesterday, the Lady Jaspers were believing they could knock off top seeded Marist. The Red Foxes instead eliminated Manhattan 55-42 as both teams shot the ball poorly. Rachele Fitz led all scorers with 21 points and grabbed 14 rebounds, while Caitlin Flood scored 16 for Manhattan. The Lady Jaspers finish the season with an 11-20 mark.
Marist jumped out to an 11-0 lead after just five minutes as Fitz got off to a hot start scoring six quick points. Undaunted, Manhattan got right back into the game with an 8-0 run with Flood scoring twice and baskets from Amanda LoCascio and Jenna Franciosa.
Trailing 21-8 with 7:03 left in the half, the Lady Jaspers scored eight of the half's final 13 points to remain very much in the ballgame at 26-16 heading into intermission.
For the first nine minutes of the second half, Manhattan remained within striking distance, trailing just 37-25 with 11:06 to play after a jumper by Michele Pacheco. The diminutive guard from the Bronx provided a nice spark for Manhattan off the bench in the second half, using her quickness to get to the basket.
As the half wore on, Marist began to steadily pull away as Manhattan's poor shooting, particularly from three-point range, was a key factor in the contest. With Flood and Kelly Regan facing double and even triple teams in the post, Manhattan had several open looks from behind the arc, but were unable to convert.
After Pacheco's bucket, Marist would go on a 15-5 run to lead 52-30, their largest of the game, with 4:39 remaining as the Red Foxes were able to whittle away the clock from that point on.
Despite facing a size disadvantage, Manhattan equaled Marist's production in the paint 20-20, but were done in by shooting 0-18 from three and being outscored 19-8 from the foul line.
With the loss, Manhattan finishes their season 11-20, and 8-12 in MAAC play including two MAAC Tournament games. Marist now advances to the MAAC Semifinals and will take on the winner of this afternoon's game between Siena and Fairfield.
