Manhattan University Athletics

HAMDEN, CT – After winning just three games all of last season, the Manhattan College women's basketball team has won three times in the past eight days.  The Jaspers (4-4, 2-0 MAAC) picked up their second straight victory to begin Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) play on Sunday afternoon, snapping defending MAAC champion Quinnipiac's (4-4, 0-2 MAAC) 17-game home winning streak with a 52-42 triumph at the TD Bank Sports Center.

“I'm extremely proud of our effort today,” Head Coach John Olenowski said.  “We wanted to keep the momentum after Friday night, and we certainly did that, going out and getting a big road win over the defending champions.”

Quinnipiac led 12-11 after one quarter, but the Jaspers opened the second quarter on a 7-0 run to take a 19-12 advantage.  The Bobcats countered with a 9-3 rally of their own, though, to pull within 22-21 at halftime.

Blake Underhill (Edgewater, NJ) scored the first points of the third quarter before Quinnipiac rattled off seven in a row to regain the lead, 28-24.  However, Crystal Ross (Philadelphia, PA) followed with a pair of free throws and Amani Tatum (Cambria Heights, NY) added a steal and layup to even the score at 28-28 with 4:23 left in the quarter.  After the Bobcats went back in front on a bucket by Paula Strautmane, Ross sank two more foul shots to tie it again.  Underhill and Tatum then converted a pair of free throws each, and a Ross layup gave the Jaspers a 36-30 advantage with 51 seconds left in the period.

Manhattan took a 36-33 lead into the fourth quarter, and the Jaspers extended the margin to 10 points, 43-33, on a Tatum layup with 4:05 remaining.  Quinnipiac got within seven at 44-37 when Tatum drove for a pair of layups to make it an 11-point game, 48-37, with 2:32 left.  The lead reached a game-high 13 points at 52-39 before the Bobcats' Adily Martucci drained a late three-pointer to make it a 52-42 final.

“We had an excellent fourth quarter,” Olenowski said.  “Every time Quinnipiac got close, we stepped up.  We would either force a turnover, or hit a big basket, or someone would get fouled and make her free throws.  And you need to do those sort of things at the end of games.”

Tatum paced the Jaspers with 18 points, eight of which came in the fourth quarter, and she added career-highs of seven rebounds and five steals.  Underhill finished with 11 points, a career-high nine boards and four steals.  Ross tallied eight points and four blocks, while Kayla Grimme (Altoona, PA) contributed eight rebounds and two blocks.

As a team, Manhattan shot 32.6 percent (14-of-43) from the field, 11.1 percent (1-of-11) from three-point range and 76.7 percent (23-of-30) at the free throw line.  The Jaspers limited the Bobcats to 21.3 percent (16-of-75) shooting, including 15.2 percent (5-of-33) from downtown, and 45.5 percent (5-of-11) at the charity stripe.  Manhattan also forced 28 Quinnipiac turnovers, leading to 23 points.

“Our defense was outstanding,” Olenowski said.  “We had a tremendous offensive game against Niagara, and we followed up with our best defensive effort of the season.”

Edel Thornton had eight points to lead Quinnipiac.  She also had five steals.  Maria Napolitano tallied seven points, three assists and five steals, while Brittany Johnson recorded five points, six rebounds and two assists.  Aryn McClure grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds, as the Bobcats outrebounded the Jaspers 48-46.

The Jaspers will now have a six-day break before resuming their non-conference schedule with a 2 p.m. visit to Holy Cross (2-6) on Saturday.  Manhattan has come away with a victory in each of its last two trips to the Hart Center, including a 66-60 triumph last season.