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RIVERDALE, N.Y. - On Feb. 28, 2010, the Manhattan College women's basketball team defeated Marist 68-65 at Draddy Gymnasium. After that contest, Marist notched 34 consecutive victories against Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) opponents. That streak came to an end on Saturday. The team responsible? The Manhattan Jaspers. The site? Draddy Gymnasium. Led by a double-double from Lindsey Loutsenhizer (North Huntingdon, Pa.), the Jaspers (12-11, 6-5 MAAC) did it again, beating the Red Foxes (15-7, 10-1 MAAC) 48-44 in front of 1,274 fans and a national audience on ESPN3.
"I said to everybody (before the game) that what we did that day was we played great defense, we hustled and rebounded," Head Coach John Olenowski said. "The exact same thing happened today. I couldn't be prouder of the team than I am today."
Trailing 44-40 with 3:27 remaining, the Jaspers got a three-pointer from Schyanne Halfkenny (Hyde Park, Mass.) to pull within one. After Marist missed a trey on the other end, Monica Roeder (Marlton, N.J.), who had been held scoreless in the game until that point, drained a three from in front of the Manhattan bench to give the Jaspers a 46-44 lead with 2:05 left.
"That was huge," Olenowski said about Roeder's three-ball. "That's the good thing about a great shooter like Monica. If you keep going, good things are going to happen at key times, and that was certainly a key time."
It would remain that way until the final minute, when Marist's Natalie Gomez missed a layup and the ball went out of bounds to Manhattan with 23 seconds remaining. After each team used a timeout, the Red Foxes were forced to foul, sending Alyssa Herrington (Cambridge, N.Y.) to the line. However, Herrington missed the front end of a one-and-one, and Corielle Yarde corralled the rebound for Marist with 13 seconds left. The Red Foxes held for one shot, but Casey Dulin's layup was off the mark and Loutsenhizer secured the rebound. She then sank a pair of free throws to ice the 48-44 victory.
The final stanza, during which the Jaspers held the Red Foxes without a field goal over the last 5:19, capped a defensive battle that featured six ties and eight lead changes. The largest lead for either side was seven points.
With Marist in front 12-10 midway through the first half, Loutsenhizer sank a three-pointer to put the Jaspers ahead. Toni-Ann Lawrence (Elmont, N.Y.) then drove for a layup to make it 15-12 Manhattan. After a Marist bucket, Herrington drained a pair of free throws, then a Nadia Peters (Bronx, N.Y.) layup gave the Jaspers what ended up being their largest lead of the game, a 19-14 advantage with 7:16 remaining before halftime.
Marist responded with a 5-0 rally to tie the score at 19-19 before the Jaspers went back in front, 23-22, on a Peters layup. Yarde hit a three-pointer to give the Red Foxes a two-point lead, then a Loutsenhizer jumper tied it, 25-25, at the 1:08 mark. Marist took a 27-25 cushion into the locker room after a steal and layup by Yarde.
The Red Foxes scored the first five points of the second half to extend their lead to 32-25 before a Herrington trey ignited a 9-2 Manhattan run that tied the game at 34-34. Marist rallied for seven of the next nine points to take a 41-36 advantage, and, after a Loutsenhizer jumper, a pair of free throws by Kristina Danella put the Red Foxes in front 43-38 with 4:36 remaining.
"We had one day to prepare, but we've really had a season to get ready for this basketball game," Olenowski said. "I said to the players that if we play defense and we rebound and we put forth a great effort, then we'd have a really good shot. And sure enough, that's what happened. We're very proud of our effort, and hopefully we can keep it going."
Loutsenhizer finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds, while Peters tallied 12 points, five rebounds, five assists and four steals. Halfkenny added five points and five boards, and Roeder also corralled five rebounds. Maggie Blair (Briarcliff, N.Y.) had four steals as Marist, which entered the game averaging just 14.5 turnovers per game, turned the ball over 19 times. Manhattan outrebounded Marist 40-39 and held a 28-12 advantage in points in the paint. As a team, the Jaspers shot 36.5 percent (19-of-52) from the field, 33.3 percent (4-of-12) from three-point land, and 75 percent (6-of-8) at the charity stripe.
Kristina Danella had 21 of Marist's 44 points. She added 12 rebounds to complete a double-double. Yarde added eight points and seven rebounds, while Leanne Ockenden tallied five rebounds, four assists and three steals. The Red Foxes were held to 24.1 percent (14-of-58) shooting and went just 6-for-32 (18.8 percent) from long range. Marist shot 90.9 percent (10-of-11) at the free throw line.
The Jaspers wrap up their three-game homestand on Friday, when they host Niagara (8-16, 5-7 MAAC) at 7 p.m.
NOTES: Manhattan snapped its three-game losing streak against Marist and improved to 23-20 all-time against the Red Foxes...The Jaspers appeared on the National MAAC Game of the Week for the second time this season...It was Manhattan's first televised home game since a matchup with Iona on Feb. 9, 2009...Loutsenhizer recorded her third double-double of the season, and her first since a 15-point, 11-rebound effort against St. Francis (NY) on Dec. 28...Manhattan used its 10th different starting lineup of the season, with Blair reentering the starting five...The Jaspers improved to 5-1 this season when holding their opponent under 50 points...Manhattan outrebounded its opponent for the sixth time this season...The Jaspers have won their last two games by a combined seven points...The contest was the opener of a Manhattan basketball doubleheader, as the men's team hosted Iona following the women's game.
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