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Women's Basketball
Bona survives scare from Fordham, earns first A-10 win
Jan. 23, 2008
ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. - The St. Bonaventure women's basketball team used a 15-6 run down the stretch to turn a late one-point advantage into a 59-49 victory over Fordham on Wednesday evening at Bob Lanier Court at the Reilly Center. The Brown and White's first Atlantic 10 win snapped the club's three-game losing streak and improved the Bonnies overall mark to 13-6 (1-3) for the season, while Fordham dropped its 41st game in the last 44 contests to fall to 0-19 (0-4) in 2007-08. Sophomore Dana Mitchell posted her A-10 leading 10th game with 20 or more points, while extending her double digit scoring streak to 19 games as the league's leading scorer registered 21 points on a 9-of-13 performance from the floor. The second year forward also added six rebounds. For the tenth time this season and fourth in her last five games, junior Katelyn Murray reached the double figure plateau with 13 tallies, including her 116th career three-pointer. Fellow classmates Ashley Edwards and Erica Schiefen each chipped in with seven points and seven rebounds apiece. With her seven-board effort vs. the Rams, Edwards moved into 17th place on the all-time Bona rebounding chart with 460 career caroms. Although the Brown and White offense still is searching for the right rhythm, the Bonnie defense seems to be just fine as they held their second straight opponent under 60 points. St. Bonaventure forced the Rams to shoot just 34.4 percent (22-64) from the field and a woeful 1-of-11 from long range. Thanks to the poor shooting effort from the Rams, Bona hauled down a season-high 44 rebounds along with 11 on the offensive glass. Following a three-plus minute span in which both teams traded baskets to open the second stanza, the Rams charged towards a 7-2 run capped by a three-pointer from senior Beth Troutt to bring the Rams within a single point at 37-36.
The Bonnies managed just a single basket from freshman Cara Gustafson during the 6:45 period until Bona tallied eight of the next ten points to regain a 44-38 lead with 9:24 showing on the scoreboard. Mitchell registered the first two points off two freebies at the charity stripe, before senior Maripier Malo posted her only field goal of the game off a baseline jumper from the right side of the floor. Murray concluded the spurt with a triple from the top of the arc to stretch the Bona lead back to six points. Fordham would cut the advantage to just one again at 44-43 just over five minutes later with 6:25 remaining as freshman Megan Mahoney and junior Annie Zopf connected on a pair of crafty running lay ups in the lane. However, Bona responded with four consecutive baskets and 15 of the game's final 21 points to seal the club's fourth win of the season on Bob Lanier Court. Fordham never came closer than five points down the stretch. Mitchell accounted for the first four points of the game-clinching spurt followed by a pair of jumpers from Edwards and sophomore Andrea Doneth to extend the lead to nine points at 52-43 with 3:27 left. Edwards canned another jumper minutes later after the Rams cut the lead to five before a 5-of-6 effort from the free throw line in the final minute to clinch victory. Twelve first half points from Mitchell sent the Bonnies to the locker room with a slim 26-24 edge in a low scoring and sluggish opening 20 minutes of action. Although a combined 13 three-pointers were taken in the opening stanza, both clubs failed to connect on a single one from long range. Turnovers proved to be a problem for both clubs as the Rams gave up the ball 10 times, while the Bonnies turned it over on seven trips down the floor. After falling behind early by an 8-6 margin thanks to six consecutive points from the Rams, the Brown and White raced out on an 11-2 run to take a 17-10 lead midway through the first half. Mitchell accounted for six points during the stretch and 10 of the club's first 17. Mitchell started the spurt with a pair of easy lay ups around the rim to regain a 10-8 edge for the home side. Following a driving bucket from Mahoney, Schiefen converted a conventional three-point play after getting hammered on her way up to the basket. Junior Tiara Johnson continued the outburst with two makes at the stripe prior to another basket on the blocks from Mitchell to push the Brown and White lead to seven points with 9:34 remaining in the half. However, the pesky Fordham club didn't back down as the visiting Rams tallied 14 of the half's final 23 points to pull within a single field goal at the break. The Rams pulled within one possession on five occasions in the final 6:18, but failed to match or surpass the Bonnies' total. The Brown and White owned the lead for all but 15 seconds in the opening half. The Brown and White return to Philadelphia for the second time this season on Saturday, February, 26 to take on La Salle at 5:00 p.m. |
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