In a Saturday afternoon matchup against undefeated Quinnipiac, the Red Foxes failed to stop the Bobcats eight game win streak. With a late fourth-quarter push and a standout performance by Quinnipiac senior forward Ella O’Donnell, Marist lost 47-59.
The first half was slow for both teams, with the Quinnipiac bigs opening the game shooting 0-for-15 against the Red Fox defense. The Bobcats found most of their points off of high-ball screens, with O’Donnell finding junior guard Paige Girardi on back-door cuts.
Against a solid Quinnipiac defense and a struggling Marist offense, the Red Foxes ended the first half shooting 5-for-24 from the field and 1-for-8 from beyond the arc.
With both teams struggling to perform on offense, shooting below 40%, Marist trailed at the half, with Quinnipiac leading 22-15. Momentum picked up for Quinnipiac out of the half, building its lead throughout the third quarter. Quinnipiac improved its shooting from the field to 40% and reached its largest lead at 17 points.
As Marist trailed 36-19, the Red Foxes slowly continued to figure it out offensively after shooting just 1-for-12 in the first quarter.
Down double figures for most of the third, Marist took control of the starting fourth. The Red Foxes learned how to read the Bobcat defense, went on a 12-point scoring run, bringing the game within five.
Freshman forward Justine Henry, who averages 11.9 points per game for Marist, had difficulty finding her shot alongside the rest of her team. At the start of the final quarter, the freshman was 2-for-10 from the field. With a slow start, Henry produced a spark for the Red Foxes in the fourth.
In transition, senior guard Jackie Piddock found a sprinting Henry for a traditional three-point play to bring the score to 39-44 with five minutes remaining. On the inbound, Piddock found Henry down low for the fade-away again, bringing the Red Foxes back within five.
In a two-possession game, sophomore guard Danielle Williamsen drove toward the foul line, jabbed to the outside, spun inside and banged in two, bringing Marist within three.
Despite the late push by Marist, Quinnipiac continued to succeed offensively with four driving layups and three points at the charity stripe, all coming from O’Donnell in the final minutes of play.
O’Donnell ended the game with a double-double with 15 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists, shooting 5-for-7 from the field.
Quinnipiac’s defensive switches kept senior guards Jackie Piddock and Lexie Tarul locked down, unable to break away and be what the Red Foxes needed to make the difference.
Marist will continue their away trip in Connecticut on Monday, against Sacred Heart University, who sit fourth in MAAC play at 5-3.
Edited by Ben Leeds
Graphic by Cara Lacey
Photo by Quinn DiFiore
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