AMHERST, N.Y. – The Daemen University women's basketball team picked up their 11
th straight victory over Queens College in a 67-51 win on Sunday afternoon. The Wildcats move to 12-5 on the year and 7-1 in East Coast Conference play, while Queens drops to 5-13 on the year and 1-7 in ECC action.
Queens opened the game on a 10-0 run, but a well-timed timeout by Daemen head coach
Jenepher Banker settled the Wildcats. Daemen went on a 41-10 run throughout the rest of the half to lead, 41-20 at the break. The Knights and Wildcats traded points to open the second half, but Queens put together a 10-4 run to end the third quarter down 18. The Knights held the Wildcats scoreless for five minutes in the beginning of the fourth, but again Daemen put together a comeback, outscoring the Knights 11-6 down the stretch to come away with the 16-point victory.
The ECC leading Wildcats have won 22 straight games at Lumsden Gymnasium, a home win streak that is tied for fourth-longest in NCAA Division II women's basketball. Daemen shot 39% (23-of-59) from the field on the day and was even more impressive beyond the arc, shooting 44% (12-of-27) for three. Daemen senior forward
Kaytlyn Matz (Johnsburg, Ill.) finished with a team-high 16 points after banking 4-of-5 triples while adding two defensive boards. Senior guard
Alahna Paige (Rochester, N.Y.) added 15 points in the win.
The Wildcats will travel across town to play at D'Youville next Sunday, Feb. 2 in a 1 PM match up.
IMPACT PLAYERS
- Paige finished 4-of-12 from the field, 3-of-7 from beyond the arc and 4-of-4 from the free throw line on the day, adding five defensive rebounds, six assists and two steals to her 15-point outing.
- Senior guard Gabby McDuffie (Buffalo, N.Y.) finished with 11 points after shooting 4-of-13 from the field, 2-of-7 from three along with seven rebounds – including a team-high four offensive boards – two assists and a steal.
- Playing at Lumsden Gymnasium against her former team for the first time, sophomore Cecilia Lapertosa (Whitesboro, N.Y.) posted a team-high eight rebounds, four points, one assist, one block and two steals.
- Queens guard Brianna Davis led all players with 17 points in the loss.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- Head coach Jenepher Banker is now just one win away from notching her 200th career win, sitting at 199-126 on the year.
- The Wildcats are 11-9 all-time against the Knights, winning the last 11 meetings.
- After trailing 10-0 early, Lapertosa got the scoring going for the Cats with a layup. A pair of triples from Matz lifted the Wildcats on top of the Knights to a lead that Daemen would never relinquish. The Cats led 22-14 after the first quarter after shooting 50% from the field and 57% from beyond the arc.
- The Wildcats came out hot in the second, outscoring the Knights 19-6 in the second quarter to take a 41-20 lead at the half. The Cats shot 71% (5-of-7) from beyond the arc in the second quarter.
- The Cats and Knights traded points to open the third, but Queens won 10 of the last 14 points in the quarter to bring the game to 56-39. Queens held the Wildcats scoreless for the first five minutes of the fourth quarter, but Daemen's offensive prowess came together for the final minutes of the game, outscoring the Knights 11-6 down the stretch to come away with the 16-point victory.
Daemen University features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 17 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.
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