Canisius was limited to just five points in the fourth quarter and only 15 in the second half as it fell to Mount St. Mary’s, 55-44, in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference women’s basketball action Thursday Night at the Koessler Athletic Center.
Michaela Harrison led the Mountaineers (11-17, 7-12 MAAC) with 13 points while her teammate, Aryna Taylor, notched 12 points of her own. On the glass, Isabella Hunt corralled a game and career-high 12 boards to compliment her six points. The Mount shot 20-of-45 (.444) from the field and just 3-of-12 (.250) from beyond the arc.
The Golden Griffins (9-19, 6-13 MAAC) were led by senior guard Jane McCauley, who scored 11 points, with sophomore guard Athina Lexa adding in 10 tallies of her own. On the glass, reigning MAAC Rookie of the Week, Sisi Eleko, hauled in a team-best six rebounds. As a team, Canisius shot just 16-of-57 (.281) from the floor and 4-of-25 (.160) from deep.
Trailing 39-38 entering the fourth quarter, the Mount would regain the lead for the first time since the 9:26 mark of the first quarter off a layup from Hunt and take a 40-39 edge with 9:27 left.
Canisius would respond with a pair of layups from guards Vannessa Garrelts and Cheyenne Stubbs to negate an earlier pair of free-throw makes from the Mountaineers to jump ahead, 43-42, with 5:26 to play.
Still, the Mount would find a response, hitting a pair of 3-pointers, courtesy of Carissa Dunham and Taylor, to grab a 48-43 edge with 3:22 remaining.
Canisius would be limited to just one more point over the remainder of the contest while the Mountaineers added in seven more points, five of which came on the free-throw line with less than one minute to play, to secure the comeback victory.
Earlier in the contest, the Griffs raced out to an early 7-2 lead with 7:46 left in the first quarter off near-perfect shooting, going 2-of-3 from the floor. The Mount would outscore the Griffs, 9-5, the remainder of the quarter and limit the Blue and Gold to just 2-of-5 shooting, but the Griffs were able to maintain their lead and head to the second quarter ahead, 12-11.
Canisius came alive in the second frame, using an 11-4 run over the first 3:54 of the stanza to race ahead to a 23-15 advantage. During the run, Canisius shot 4-of-5 from the floor with freshman forward Chloe Chard Peloquin punctuating the run with a 3-point play.
The Mount would cut into the Canisius lead with six unanswered points and make it 23-21 with 3:28 remaining, but the Blue and Gold would close the half by outscoring the Mountaineers, 6-2, to enter halftime ahead, 29-23.
Canisius and the Mount would trade baskets during the third quarter, but a late 6-2 run by the Mount, led by four points from Taylor, would cut their deficit to just one, 39-38, and set them up for their late-game comeback.
Postgame Comments from Head Coach Sahar Nusseibeh
Game Notes:
• This was the first time since Dec. 30, 2008, that Canisius and Mount St. Mary’s played one another in Buffalo, N.Y.
• Canisius cannot advance any higher than the nine seed with the loss, but can still drop to the 10 seed ahead of the MAAC Tournament.
• For the first time this season, McCauley finished as the leading scorer for the Griffs. She is the ninth player this season to finish the game as the leading scorer for Canisius, which leads the nation. Oklahoma is second with eight different players leading the team in scoring at least once.
• The Griffs were limited to just 2-of-13 (.154) shooting during the fourth quarter.
Up Next:
The Blue and Gold conclude the regular season Saturday with a 1 p.m. contest against Siena, with the game airing on ESPN3.
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