CANISIUS COLLEGE ATHLETICS
Game Recap
Five Canisius players recorded double-figures in the scoring column, led by sophomore Danielle Sanderlinand her second career double-double of 12 points and 11 rebounds, but it was not enough for the Golden Griffins, as the team fell to visiting Miami (Ohio) 62-59 Friday night in the Koessler Athletic Center in the season opener for both programs.
Juniors D’Jhai Petterson-Ricks and Shannon Conleyalso had 12 points for the Canisius (0-1), while seniorSara Hinriksdottir and sophomore Anndea Zeiglerchipped in 11 and 10 points, respectively. Conley’s 12 points set a new career high for the Bethel Park, Pa., native, while Hinriksdottir grabbed nine boards to go with two assists and two steals. For the game, Canisius shot 34.5 percent from the field and made just 2-of-15 attempts from 3-point range. Of the team’s 59 points on Friday, 34 came in the paint.
Four Redhawk (1-0) players posted double-figures in the scoring column, led by senior Kendall McCoy, who posted a game-high 16 points. She finished the night by going 7-for-13 from the field and 2-for-5 from 3-point land while also pulling down seven boards before fouling out of the contest in the fourth quarter. Junior Lauren Dickerson was good for 13 points, a game-high eight assists, two steals and two blocks for Miami (Ohio), which shot 37.7 percent from the floor, 25 percent from 3-point land and 66.7 percent from the free-throw line.
Canisius led by as many as 19 points early late in the second quarter before heading into the locker room with a 39-26 lead at the intermission. Miami (Ohio) used an 8-0 run over the first 3:32 of the third quarter to trim the Griffs’ margin to five at 39-34. Two free-throws by Sanderlin with 3:18 left in the third stanza pushed Canisius’ lead back to nine at 45-36, but the RedHawks continued to battle and made the score 59-57 with 4:06 left in regulation time after senior Leah Purvis hit a jumper.
Miami (Ohio) took its first lead since early in the first quarter with 57 seconds left on the clock after junior Savannah Kluesner hit a pair of free-throws. Canisius came up empty on its next two possessions and a made free-throw by Dickerson with four ticks on the clock sealed the victory for the visiting team.
Head Coach Scott Hemer‘s Postgame Comments
“Overall, I am disappointed that we came out on the wrong end of the stick, especially because we were ahead for much of the game, but there were so many positive things that came out came out tonight. It was our first game of the year, our first run together with a completely new system and some players with totally new roles. I had one goal for them tonight – for this group to play together as a team. We wanted to stick together through the good and the bad and I thought we did that. They executed well, and I thought we did a good job of changing on the fly, but at the end of the game, I think we ran out of gas a bit and to [Miami (Ohio)’s] credit, they did not.”
Game Notes
• Friday marked the fourth all-time meeting between the two schools. Miami (Ohio) leads the series 4-0.
• The crowd of 1,228 is the largest single-game women’s basketball crowd (non Kid’s Day event) in program history.
• Canisius had five players in double-figures for the first time since Nov. 22, 2016 against St. Francis (Pa.).
• The 11 rebounds for Sanderlin set a new career-high for the Williamstown, N.J., native.
• Patterson-Ricks earned the start in her first career game as a Griff after transferring from Tyler Junior College.
• The game on Friday marked the first under new head coach Scott Hemer, who spent the previous 11 seasons as the head coach at Geneseo.
Up Next
Canisius will return to action Tuesday, Nov. 13, when the team travels to play at long-time rival St. Bonaventure. Tipoff in the Reilly Center is set for 7 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
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