WORCESTER, Mass. - The College of Saint Rose never trailed en route to earning a gritty 85-77 Northeast-10 Conference victory at Assumption this afternoon.
The Golden Knights (11-8/4-8 NE10), which shot 52.6 percent from the field in the road win, put four players in double figures. Senior guard
Ashley Vanderwall, who totaled 17 second-half points, made some important foul shots late on her way to a game-high 23 points. Junior guard
Courtney Clasen tossed in 22 points on 57.1 percent shooting.
Senior guard
Isa Vara de Rey and senior forward
Zoe McDonald chipped in with 10 points apiece. McDonald grabbed 11 boards for her first "double-double" of the season.
"Our team played hard for 40 minutes," said Saint Rose Head Coach
Karen Haag. "We got contributions on both ends of the floor and showed a lot of grit and resilience down the stretch despite having a few players playing out of position due to foul trouble."
Assumption (10-9/5-7 NE10) also had four players in twin figures. Sophomore guard Meghan Cramb topped the Greyhounds with 19 points, while junior guard Brianna Capacchione added 18.
Saint Rose began the matinee on a 12-4 run. Assumption battled back to trail by two, 24-22, after the first quarter. The Golden Knights continued starting stanzas strong, netting nine of the first 11 second period points to hold a 33-24 advantage. Once again, Assumption continued to trim its deficit during the middle portion of frame, cutting the contest to a single-point, 38-37, with 1:58 left before the break. At the intermission, the Golden Knights, which shot 60.0 percent from the field in the opening half, were up 46-41. Clasen topped all players with 13 first half points.
The Golden Knights opened up the third on a 10-0 run to regain control. The Greyhounds, which attempted 12 free throws in the quarter, remained within striking distance at 64-53 as the final frame commenced.
Saint Rose again began a period with momentum, beginning the fourth on 7-2 run across 2:01. Clasen closed the stretch by converting a three-point play with 7:59 remaining to give Saint Rose a 71-55 lead.
Assumption made things interesting late, getting its "Leukemia Awareness Day" game to five with 27 seconds remaining. Vanderwall sealed the victory by going 5-for-6 from the foul line the rest of the way.
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Both squads have home NE10 games up next. Saint Rose hosts Saint Anselm on Wednesday at 5:30 pm for Academic and Athletics Night. Fans that are unable to make it to Daniel P. Nolan Gymnasium to attend the game can follow all the action live on
gogoldenknights.tv on NE10 NOW or follow along with
live stats. Assumption receives a visit from Southern Connecticut State on Tuesday. That contest also tips at 5:30 pm.
Notes: Vanderwall has scored in double figures in 10 of the last 11 games...She's averaged 17.5 points on 40.6 percent shooting during the stretch (Dec. 8, 2018-present)...Clasen established a career-best with six steals this afternoon.
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