Shooting strongly in the first half and holding a 13-point lead, Marist faced offensive struggles in the second half in the slim 57-55 win over Sacred Heart for the team’s first conference win.
The Red Foxes shot over 50% in the first quarter and ended the second half shooting 5-for-25 from the field. Freshman forward Justine Henry, sophomore guard Danielle Williamsen and redshirt senior forward Lexie Tarul all recorded double digits for the Red Foxes.
Sacred Heart started the first quarter on an 11-to-5 run that Marist broke up by scoring back-to-back 3-pointers from Williamsen and Tarul. The Red Foxes opened in a press that allowed them to use their transition offense early; the early press backfired as the Marist defense struggled to get back and set up.
A delayed transition defense led to junior center Emma Kirby having her way in the paint, knocking down seven points in the first five minutes, while she averages just eight points per game so far this season.
Top scorer, Amelia Wood, received her second foul just six minutes on the clock in the first quarter, sending the senior guard to the bench for the remainder of the first half. Marist took advantage of the time without Wood.
Head coach Erin Doughty called off the press midway through the first quarter, returning the team to its usual man-to-man defense. Sophomore guards Kasey Bretones and Chloe Escanillas provided a spark on both sides of the ball for Marist, contributing nine points off the bench, in the team’s 23-point first quarter.
By the second quarter, Marist led the Pioneers by 11. In a category that Marist has struggled in early on this season, the Red Foxes played aggressive defense, anticipating where the Pioneers wanted the ball to go.
Marist accounted for seven steals and 17 points on turnovers in the first half.
Despite a near six-minute scoring drought to end the second quarter, the Red Foxes still outscored the Pioneers in the second quarter and entered halftime leading, 35-28.
Wood immediately made her return known to start the second half, and Sacred Heart also returned to their diamond formation press that the Red Foxes struggled against in the opening minutes of play.
Taking it to the basket through the Marist defense, Wood got her first points within the 3-point arc, closing the gap, 37-34. After being down 13, the Pioneers took their first lead since the first quarter, midway through the third quarter, going on an 8-to-0 score run, four of those points coming from Wood.
After shooting 9-for-17 in the first quarter, the Red Foxes went 1-for-9 in the third. Another shift that occurred in the third was turnovers. Marist accumulated just three turnovers in the first 20 minutes, where the energetic Pioneers forced four turnovers in the 10-minute quarter.
Off a pass from junior forward Karly Fischer, Williamsen sunk a three, reclaiming the lead for the Red Foxes at 42-40. With a little under two minutes remaining in the quarter, Fischer recorded her fourth foul in the final minute of the third, sending her to the bench and Pioneers senior guard Sierra Johnson to the line to tie the game at 42.
Sacred Heart opened the final 10 minutes by scoring the first three baskets, as Kirby added to her impressive campaign, shooting 6-for-6 from the field.
Once holding a 13-point lead, Marist now trailed and struggled to produce offensively, opening the fourth quarter shooting 0-for-7 until senior guard Jackie Piddock stepped up.
Piddock knocked down her 18th 3-pointer of the year to tie the game and then immediately drew an offensive foul on the other side of the court on a driving Kirby. The lead then came back to Marist off a deep two-pointer from Escanillias.
Out of an official timeout during the fourth minute, the Red Foxes caught the Pioneers off guard, moving to a 2-3 zone, resulting in Sacred Heart’s 20th turnover of the game. Marist continued to force the Pioneers into uncomfortable positions, slowing the opposition’s game down and holding the team to zero fast break points.
Tarul put down her third 3-pointer of the game as the clock wound down to a little over two minutes left, giving Marist a slight edge. Junior guard Nalyce Dudley immediately responded with a backdoor layup to make the score 53-52.
Up by one and with 40 seconds on the clock, Marist gained possession off the rebound. Using the shot clock to her advantage, Piddock dribbled around until the time was right and drove to the basket, placing the Red Foxes up three in the waning moments of the game.
Wood got the ball at the top of the key as the clock ticked down. She stepped back and knocked in a game-tying 3-pointer, leaving 7.5 seconds on the clock for the Red Foxes. On the Marist inbound, junior guard Missy Nuku fouled Piddock, sending her to the line, with the game on the line
Piddock made both shots, handing the Pioneers one final shot to change the game. 5.2 seconds remained as Sacred Heart inbounded the ball, where they found Wood in the corner. The guard got one final shot off beyond the arc that rimmed all away around the basket before popping out and ending in a first MAAC victory for Marist this season.
The Red Foxes will look to get another conference win on the road on Saturday against Manhattan.
Edited by Ben Leeds
Graphic by Quinn DiFiore
Photo by Celia Green
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