Nov. 12, 2010
Box Score
LOUDONVILLE, N.Y. -- A game-closing 12-3 run allowed the Navy women's basketball team to pull away from Siena and record a 57-43 victory over the Saints Friday night at the Alumni Recreation Center in Loudonville, N.Y. The game was the first of the season for both programs.
The Mids would hold the lead for final 29 minutes of the game, a span that started when Alix Membreno (Fr., Loxahatchee, Fla.) made a free throw to give Navy a 12-11 lead, but it took until the game-closing run before the Mids enjoyed any kind of sizeable cushion over the Saints.
After the Mids built up a 27-19 lead at halftime, they were able to extend the margin to as many as 10 points on three different occasions in the early part of the second half. However, the Saints soon climbed right back into the game and closed to within 37-33 with just 10:19 left in the game.
Navy's ensuing possession saw Cassie Consedine (Sr., Bartlesville, Okla.) drain a three-point field goal to increase the cushion to seven points. Siena slowly scored the next three points to again make it a four-point game, but this time Angela Myers (Sr., San Antonio, Texas) drilled a three-pointer to give Navy a 43-36 lead with 8:24 showing on the clock.
After Siena cut the deficit to five points at 43-38, first the Mids then the Saints converted a pair of free throw attempts to make the score 45-40 with 5:26 left to play. From there, Navy would tally 12 of the final 15 points scored in the remainder of the contest to record the victory.
The run started for the Mids with Myers sinking two free throw attempts. Jasmine Pitts (So., Long Beach, N.Y.) then stole the ball and went the length of the court for a bucket to give Navy a 49-40 advantage with four minutes left to play. The two teams then exchanged turnovers before Siena missed the front end of a bonus free throw attempt. Pitts promptly drained another trey to boost the Navy advantage to 12 points at 52-40.
"We didn't play great, and we can shoot the ball better than we did tonight," said Navy head coach Stefanie Pemper. "Siena's defense took us out of rhythm at times, and they have two very athletic post players who were effective on offense for them."
Both teams shot a nearly identical percentage in the game (roughly 35 percent), but Navy connected on nine three-point field goals (on 24 attempts) and was 12-of-16 from the foul line while Siena tallied a trio of three-pointers (on 12 attempts) and sank just 6 of its 12 free throw attempts.
The Mids scored 24 points off of 18 Siena turnovers, while the Saints tallied 15 points following the 16 turnovers committed by Navy.
Myers led all players in scoring with 21 points, while also adding five rebounds, five assists and three steals in the game. She would be joined in double figures by her teammate Pitts, who tallied 17 points.
"Angela was great tonight," said Pemper. "She really led us with her intensity and competitiveness. Jasmine hit a couple of big three-pointers against Siena's zone and made a huge play with her steal and basket, and Jade Geif's (Fr., Lakeview, Minn.) defense was crucial. Jade may have scored only one basket in her 30 minutes, but we needed her on the defensive end."
Serena Moore led Siena with 14 points and eight rebounds.
Navy will remain on the road for a Sunday afternoon game at NJIT in Newark, N.J. Links to live statistics and a free audio stream from the 2 p.m. game will be available at www.NavySports.com(.)
