Falcons Fly to 90-64 Win over Women's Basketball

NEW HAVEN, Conn.—An Anna Maria College women's basketball trifecta combined for 49 points but it was not enough, as the AMCATS were topped by the Falcons of Albertus Magnus College 90-64 in Tuesday's Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) matchup.

The win, the seventh-in-a-row for the Falcons, boosts Albertus Magnus to 13-6 overall and 5-2 in league play, while Anna Maria falls to 6-14 overall and 0-8 in GNAC action.

AMCAT LEADERS

Junior Nicole Mareiro (Acushnet, Mass.) led all Anna Maria scorers with 18 points off the bench. She finished 6-11 from the floor and 4-9 from three-point range. Classmates Deja Taitt (Cambia Heights, N.Y.) and Christina Gauvin (Dudley, Mass.) were close behind with 16- and 15-point performances, respectively.

Taitt also dished out a game-high seven assists, while Gauvin finished with tree. Junior Emily Capstick (Worcester, Mass.) tallied a team-best eight rebounds.

ALBERTUS MAGNUS LEADERS

The Falcons saw a game-high 28 points from Liz Falcigno, followed by 14 points from Olivia Bolden. Jill Johnson added 10 points, while Kelsey Pendagast recorded an impressive 16 rebounds.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Albertus Magnus came out of the gates strong, jumping out to an early 10-3 edge over the first two and a half minutes of play. During the spurt, the Falcons forced three turnovers and Falcigno netted seven points. After Anna Maria pulled within two at 12-10 later in frame following a trey from Mareiro, Albertus Magnus held the guests scoreless over the final 3:41 of the frame to lead 17-10 after one. To close out the first quarter, Albertus Magnus senior forward Chelsea Sherrod scored on a layup and Falcigno knocked down three free throws.

The second quarter was filled with runs for both teams as the AMCATS charged back to take a one-point lead and Albertus Magnus would answer and stretch their lead to as many as 11 within a four-minute span. Three minutes into the frame, Anna Maria began a 9-0 run to take a 25-24 edge. During the run, the Falcons committed three turnovers and the AMCATS scored on three straight possessions capped by a three-pointer from Mareiro with 5:45 left in the half. The hosts would answer with a basket by Sherrod on the following possession and close out the half on a 14-7 run to hold a 40-32 advantage heading into the break.

Both teams struggled from the field in the third quarter, combining to shoot 33 percent (12-of-36). However, Albertus Magnus was able to get to the free-throw line 14 times, converting nine of their attempts to stretch the lead back to double digits. Falcigno nearly outscored the AMCATS on her own in the frame, netting 12 points including a pair of shots from beyond the arc. A 26-19 scoring advantage in the fourth quarter pushed the Falcons to the 26-point victory.

WHAT'S NEXT

Anna Maria heads back to Connecticut on Thursday for a 7:00 p.m. non-conference tilt at Western Connecticut State before hosting Simmons on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.