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Daemen University Athletics

Western New York's Premier Division II Team
Fearless, Integrity, Effort, Respect, Commitment, Excitement
Claire Pikett goes up for the layup
Geoff Schneider
79
Winner Daemen DAEMEN 6-3, 2-0
64
Dist. Columbia DIST. CO 2-7, 1-1
Winner
Daemen DAEMEN
6-3, 2-0
79
Final
64
Dist. Columbia DIST. CO
2-7, 1-1
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Daemen DAEMEN 25 24 12 18 79
Dist. Columbia DIST. CO 13 17 21 13 64

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | CONTACT: Mary Margaret Johnson, Director of Athletics Communications | mmjohnso@daemen.edu

Wildcats Cruise To 79-64 Win At UDC

WASHINGTON, DC – Three Wildcats tallied double-digit points and junior forward Cecilia Lapertosa (Whitesboro, N.Y.) posted her fourth double-double of the season as the Daemen University women's basketball team won their sixth-straight game in a commanding 79-64 win over the University of the District of Columbia on Sunday afternoon. Daemen improves to 6-3 on the year and 2-0 in East Coast Conference play after winning both road games to open up their conference schedule. UDC drops to 2-7 on the year and 1-1 in ECC games.
 
Three of Daemen's five starters combined for 56 of the Wildcats' 79 total points. Daemen had three double-digit scorers for the sixth game this season and were led offensively by junior forward Claire Pikett (Holland, N.Y.) who posted a season-high 20 points on the day. Lapertosa and Danielle DiCintio (Somers, N.Y.) each totaled 18 points as the Wildcats shot a season-best 46.8% from the field and knocked down a season-high 15 three point field goals.
 
IMPACT PLAYERS
  • Pikett totaled 20 points after going 6-of-14 from the field and knocking down a career-high five triples (5-of-9) while narrowly missing a double-double with nine rebounds. She added two steals and one assist to her stat line.
  • The only player to play all 40 minutes today, Lapertosa tallied a double-double for the fourth time this season, scoring 18 points and totaling 10 along with five assists and one block. The junior shot 50% from the field, going 7-of-14 while banking both three's that she shot today.
  • DiCintio totaled 18 points after knocking down 5-of-10 from beyond the arc and added six rebounds and five assists.
  • Sophomore guard Sophie Auer (Lewiston, N.Y.) finished with 8 points after shooting 4-of-8 from the field. She finished with six rebounds, five assists and one steal on the day.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
  • After a slow start to the first, the Wildcats and Firebirds tied the game up at 13 with three minutes left in the quarter. From there, Daemen scored 12 unanswered points off a pair of triples from DiCintio and Pikett and jumpers from DiCintio, Tayla Barros (Boston, Mass.) and Ne'vaeh Buntley (Rochester, N.Y.) to take a 25-13 lead into the second.
  • A layup from Auer continued Daemen's run to open up the second quarter, but the Firebirds would stop the bleeding with five consecutive points of their own off layups and a free throw from Tori Williams to bring it within nine, 27-18. The Wildcats responded with a DiCintio triple to again take a double-digit lead, and from there went on a 14-2 run over three minutes of game play to jump out to a 21-point advantage. Despite UDC scoring the final seven points of the half, Daemen outscored the Firebirds 24-17 in the second and led 49-30 at the break.
  • UDC took the reins in the third quarter, scoring 21 points while holding the Wildcats to just 12 points off two layups, a pair of three's and two free throws. The Firebirds closed the gap in the third to 10 points.
  • The Firebirds got the Daemen advantage under double-digits with a layup in the first 30 seconds of the fourth quarter, but the Wildcat offense got going from there, scoring 10 of the next 14 points off triples from DiCintio and Pikett and a pair of Lapertosa layups. Daemen maintained a steady lead for the final five minutes and finished with a 79-64 win over UDC. 
GAME NOTES
  • Today marked the first win at UDC for the Wildcats since Feb. 2022. Daemen lost at the nation's capital in both the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons.
  • The Wildcats got back into the Division II College Sports Communicators (D2CSC) East Region poll this week, ranking 10th in the Week 4 regional poll, released on Monday.
  • Daemen improved to 13-9 all-time against the Firebirds. The Wildcats have won the past three matchups between the two teams, including the ECC semifinals in 2024.
  • Freshman Morgan White (Canandaigua, N.Y.) made her first career start today and finished with five points, five rebounds and four assists. 
UP NEXT
The Wildcats will host St. Thomas Aquinas College and Mercy University in a pair of ECC home games next weekend (Dec. 13, 15) at Lumsden Gymnasium.
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.

Follow the Daemen women's basketball program on Twitter, Instagram at @DaemenWBB
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