Marist women’s basketball (5-5) could not buy a basket in the first half, making just three of their first 20 shots from the field and 2-for-23 from beyond the arc overall in a 66-49 loss to the Holy Cross Crusaders (6-4) in a game that started at 10:30 a.m.
Junior guard Simone Foreman led the way for Holy Cross with 23 points, while senior forward Lindsay Berger notched a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Junior center Morgan Lee led all Marist scorers with 13 points—a majority of which came from the free-throw line where she went 9-for-10.
It was all Crusaders early on in the contest, much to the delight of the fans in Hart Center Arena who were loud all game long. Berger finished a layup and Foreman canned a shot from beyond the arc to start the Holy Cross offense.
The Red Foxes had a rocky start on the contrary, going 0-for-5 from the field while committing three turnovers as a team in the first four minutes. Lee eventually put a stop to that with a layup for the first points of the game for Marist.
Redshirt junior guard Lexie Tarul kicked off her day with a mid-range jumper on the ensuing possession for the Red Foxes. However, Foreman answered back with a layup plus a foul, giving the Crusaders a 10-4 lead early in the game.
Holy Cross continued to build on their first quarter lead as sophomore guard Kendall Eddy drilled a wide open three-pointer. The Crusaders followed with three consecutive possessions that resulted in easy close range shots and layups. Meanwhile the Red Foxes continued to come up empty on the other end, allowing Holy Cross to go on the 12-0 run and take a 19-6 advantage after the first 10 minutes. Marist went 3-for-13 from the field and missed all five attempts from long distance in the first quarter.
It was more of the same to start the second quarter as Foreman knocked down a floater plus a foul. While she missed the attempt from the line, Berger picked up an offensive rebound, setting up junior guard Kaitlyn Flanagan for a mid-range jumper which she made.
The Crusaders continued to exploit the Red Foxes’ defense as Berger cashed in on an elbow jumper with the shot clock winding down. Senior guard Lauren Huber and junior guard Mary-Elizabeth Donnelly delivered a pair of open shots as well to stretch the lead to 21 midway through the second quarter.
Flanagan got into a groove towards the end of the quarter, sinking a shot from beyond the arc and making a layup plus a foul in transition. Flanagan made the free-throw attempt to give Holy Cross a 39-13 lead with 1:33 left to go.
Marist was still unable to find any kind of a rhythm on the offensive end as they did not find their first field goal of the second quarter till the 1:05 mark. Lee and Tarul combined to go 6-for-7 from the free-throw line for the only points in the quarter up to that point.
Junior guard Ciara Croker gave the Red Foxes a spark heading into the half with a stepback jumper. Sophomore guard Julia Corsentino followed that up with a driving layup and a tough finish just outside the paint to cut into the lead slightly. Nonetheless, the Red Foxes found themselves down 20 in a half showcased by Foreman and Flanagan who combined for 24 points before halftime.
Marist, a team that has been built on the three-pointer so far this season, went 0-for-10 from beyond the arc in the first half.
Croker finally gave the Red Foxes their first three-pointer of the game in the opening two minutes of the third quarter. Corsentino also kept her momentum going with a pair of layups to give her eight points, while Tarul knocked down a long two-point shot to make it 45-28 early in the frame.
The Red Foxes were able to slow the Crusader offense down by forcing five turnovers in the first seven minutes of the third quarter.
Lee hit a turnaround jumper late in the quarter to cut the deficit to 16, but the Red Foxes were unable to fully capitalize on the early burst they had to open the third quarter.
Berger knocked down a pair of free-throws to put her in double digits and Foreman finished a difficult layup as the buzzer sounded to give Holy Cross their 20-point lead back going into the fourth. Donnelly garnered her seventh assist of the day on the buzzer-beating basket.
Corsentino finished on a floater to start the fourth quarter, putting her in double-figures. She then made a diving effort in front of the scorers table to give Marist an extra possession and a wide-open layup for junior guard Jackie Piddock. Corsentino finished with 12 points off the bench.
Tarul later followed with her first three pointer of the game to make it 52-37, as she finished with 11 points in the game.
The Red Foxes’ second-half offense was mainly built on scoring off of turnovers. They forced 10 of Holy Cross’ 16 turnovers in the final two quarters which they scored 15 points off of. The exceptional effort in the second-half was too little too late for Marist however, as the Crusaders cruised to the 17 point victory.
Marist will still head into MAAC play with a .500 win percentage in non-conference games. The Red Foxes will start conference games on the road against Mount St. Mary’s on Thursday at 7 p.m.
Edited by Hayden Shapiro
Photo by Jaylen Rizzo
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