Box Score Dec. 29, 2008
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Bronx, N.Y. -
Behind the two-headed scoring threat of Becky Peters and Annie Zopf, the Fordham Rams topped the Bryant Bulldogs, 70-51, in the championship game of the Fordham Holiday Tournament at the Rose Hill Gym on Monday. In the consolation game, Colgate defeated Norfolk State, 78-54.
With the tournament win, Fordham moves over the .500 mark for the first time this season at 7-6 overall. It is the latest Fordham has a winning record since the 2002-03 campaign, when the Rams were 9-4 through 13 contests.
The early stages of the game saw Fordham down halfway through the first half. With the score tied at 11, Bryant scored 11 straight points, six of which came from Siamone Bennett, for a 22-11 lead with 8:52 left in the period. The Rams slowly chipped away at the lead, as Annie Zopf hit a pair of three-pointers, while Tiffany Stokes converted a pair of fast break baskets to give Fordham a 24-23 edge with 6:07 remaining. Zopf later hit her fourth three-point shot of the half, while Kyara Weekes also connected from long distance, as the Rams took a 34-28 lead into the break.
At the break, Annie Zopf led all scorers with 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting from three-point range, while Kelsey O'Keefe had 11 points for Bryant.
Bryant continued to hang around in the early portion of the second half, closing to within four on two occasions, the last on two free throws from Courtney Schermerhorn. Fordham though would go on a 15-4 run over a seven-minute stretch, highlighted by three-pointers from Kristina Bell and Zopf to give Fordham a 15-point lead, 53-38. The Rams then cruised from there as they went on to a 19-point win for the tournament title.
For Fordham, Becky Peters recorded her second consecutive double-double with a season-high 24 points and 11 rebounds and was named the tournament's most valuable player. It was the first time Fordham has had a player record back-to-back double-doubles since Kyshawn Ruff did so in the final two games of the 2002-03 season.
Fordham's Annie Zopf was also named to the All-Tournament team, after scoring 17 points and hitting five three-pointers in the championship game.
For Bryant, Kelsey O'Keefe and Siamone Bennett each scored 16 points in the game and were both selected to the All-Tournament team.
The Fordham women's basketball team will next be in action on Friday, January 2nd, as they play at Lehigh University, beginning at 2:00 PM.
2008 Fordham Holiday Tournament Awards
Champion - Fordham
Runner-Up - Bryant
Tournament MVP - Becky Peters - Fordham
All-Tournament Team - Annie Zopf - Fordham, Kelsey O'Keefe - Bryant, Siamone Bennett - Bryant, Tayler Wejnert - Colgate, Ebony Gibbs - Norfolk State
