AMHERST, N.Y. – Junior Madison Rowland (Albany, N.Y.) connected on 5-of-7 five three-pointers and totaled 27 points to lead Queens College to an 85-62 victory over Daemen College in women's basketball action here today. Queens, the preseason favorite to claim the East Coast Conference title, ran its winning streak to four games and improved to 9-6 overall and 6-3 in the ECC. Daemen dropped to 4-12 overall and 2-8 in the league.
Sophomore Sarah Saba (Lancaster, N.Y./Lancaster) paced Daemen with 17 points and eight rebounds, while senior Somara Colon (Bronx, N.Y./Mott Haven Village Prep) connected on 5-of-7 shots and added 12 points. Junior Leah McDonell (North Tonawanda, N.Y./Cardinal O'Hara) added 11 points and four assists, while sophomore Liz Miles (Cicero, N.Y./Cicero-North Syracuse) chipped in four points and eight rebounds in 15 minutes off the bench.
Senior Raeann Stilwell (Cheektowaga, N.Y./St. Mary's of Lancaster) registered a three-pointer for the eighth-straight game and now stands just six three-pointers shy of setting a new program record for most career three-pointers. Stilwell has made 237 triples over her career. 2005 graduate Jessica Ruddell made a record 242 three-pointers during her career.
Rowland, the preseason ECC Player of the Year, equaled her season-high for points and also totaled eight rebounds and three steals. Her sister MacKenzie Rowland (Albany, N.Y.), a 6-foot-2 senior forward, added 13 points and six steals for the visitors, while senior Kristen Korzevinski (New Hyde park, N.Y.) contriburted 14 points and four assists.
Queens connected on six of its first nine shots en route to an early 14-5 lead. A conventional three-point play by Madison Rowland with 6:54 left in the first quarter capped the early run. Queens went scoreless for the next 3:26, but Daemen managed just five points during that stretch and Queens regained a seven-point cushion (17-10) after freshman Kaitlyn Mahon (Middle Village, N.Y.) drained a three-pointer with 3:28 left in the quarter. The Knights took a 23-15 lead into the second quarter.
Queens scored the first five points of the second quarter and the visitors later took a 39-21 lead following a three-pointer by freshman Emer Moloney (Glendale, N.Y.) midway through the quarter. Daemen outscored the Knights 10-4 the rest of the quarter and Queens took a 43-31 lead into halftime.
The teams traded baskets for the first five minutes of the third quarter and Queens held a 53-42 lead when a bucket by Madison Rowland sparked the Knights on a 9-2 run. A layup by Mackenzie Rowland with 1:41 left in the quarter capped the run and gave Queens a 62-44 lead. The Knights took a 64-46 lead into the final frame.
Queens opened the final quarter by outscoring the Wildcats 13-5 over the first five minutes and Daemen came no closer than 22 points down the stretch.
Daemen connected on just 18-of-57 (.316) shots overall and made just 4-of-18 three-pointers. Queens shot an efficient 42-percent (33-for-78) from the field overall and made 9-of-16 from downtown (7-for-9 in the first half). Daemen finished with a 48-42 edge in total rebounds and both teams collected 14 offensive rebounds. Turnovers were a key statistic in the game, as Daemen turned the ball over a season-high 26 times and Queens converted that into a 31-7 edge in points off turnovers.
Daemen returns to action Friday (Jan. 29) when it travels to the University of the District of Columbia in an ECC game at 5 p.m.
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