AMHERST, N.Y. – Sophomore Brooke Fields (Owings Mills, Md.) drilled four three-pointers and totaled 24 points to lead nationally-ranked Roberts Wesleyan College to a 76-63 victory over Daemen College here tonight.
RWC, which is ranked 25th in the latest D2SIDA national poll, has now won six of its last seven games and improved to 20-4 overall and 12-4 in the East Coast Conference. Daemen saw its season-best four-game winning streak come to an end and dropped to 8-14 overall and 6-10 in the ECC.
Senior Raeann Stilwell (Cheektowaga, N.Y./St. Mary's of Lancaster) paced the host Wildcats with 16 points, nine rebounds and three steals. The effort moves Stilwell into the Top-10 among Daemen's career scoring leaders. She has now scored 1,322 points in 110 career games. Junior Leah McDonell (North Tonawanda, N.Y./Cardinal O'Hara) helped the Daemen cause with 11 points and four assists. Sophomore Sarah Saba (Lancaster, N.Y./Lancaster), who entered the game averaging a team-high 16.7 points, picked up her fourth personal foul midway through the third quarter and finished with nine points in 25 minutes—snapping a streak of 14-straight games in which she had scored in double figures. Senior Somara Colon (Bronx, N.Y./Mott Haven Village Prep) added nine points and nine rebounds, while junior Natalie Galus (Hamburg, N.Y./Frontier) chipped in seven points and four blocks.
Fields scored 14 of her 24 points in the first half. Senior Lakiah Huff (Joppatowne, Md.) contributed 15 points in 19 minutes off the bench for the Redhawks, while sophomore Lucy Covley (Fairport, N.Y.) went 3-for-9 from downtown and totaled 12 points.
A three-pointer by Fields gave RWC 10-2 lead just two minutes into the game, and the Redhawks later took their largest lead of the first quarter, 18-8, following a layup by Fields midway through the frame. The teams traded baskets the rest of the quarter and RWC took a 27-19 lead into the second quarter.
Daemen managed just two free throws over the first six minutes of the second quarter, which allowed the Redhawks to build a 15-point lead, 36-21. Both teams struggled to score over the final four minutes of the quarter, and the Redhawks took a 39-25 lead into halftime.
The teams traded three-pointers early in the third quarter, but RWC answered with back-to-back titles by Covley and Fields and opened up a 20-point lead, 48-28, at the 7:52 mark of the third quarter. Daemen later cut the lead to 13 points, 50-37, but RWC answered with seven unanswered points and regained a 20-point cushion, 57-37, following a jumper by freshman Emily Nester (Henrietta, N.Y.) with 3:36 left in the quarter. RWC took a 59-44 lead into the fourth quarter.
The RWC lead was 19 points, 67-48, with just over three minutes to play when the Wildcats made things interesting with an 11-2 run. A three-pointer by junior Jesse DeWaters (Lockport, N.Y./Niagara County CC) with 55 seconds left capped the run and cut the lead to 10 points, 69-59. The Redhawks secured the win by hitting 7-of-8 free throws down the stretch.
Daemen shot just 32-percent (24-for-74) from the field overall and made 5-of-28 from downtown. The Redhawks connected on just 37-percent (24-for-65) from the field overall, but canned 11-of-27 three-point attempts. Daemen finished with a slim 49-46 edge in total rebounds.
Daemen returns to action Friday (Feb. 19) when it hosts Long Island University—Post in an ECC game at 6 p.m.
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