Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 Feb. 21, 2013
Final Stats
KINGSTON, R.I. -
One of the four Division I schools to bear the moniker Rams, Fordham accomplished something this year that none of the others has: beating all three in one season. The Rams (19-7, 9-2 A-10) clinched their sweep on Thursday night in Kingston, R.I., downing URI, 51-42.
The skies may have been clear outside the Ryan Center when the game started, but inside it was raining threes. Fordham hit its first two attempts and four of its first seven from downtown to jump out to a 14-8 lead five minutes into the game. Marah Strickland converted on two, while Erin Rooney and Abigail Corning each sank one.
The two teams traded buckets over the next seven minutes and Strickland's tenth point of the game at the 7:50 mark of the half put the Rams up 26-21.
From there, Fordham struggled to find the bottom of the bucket, with two Rooney free throws accounting for the Rams' remaining points. But Coach Gaitley's squad held tough on defense, limiting Rhode Island (6-20, 1-10 A-10) to only four points over the closing 8:20 of the half and entering the locker room with a 28-25 lead.
Strickland and Rooney paced Fordham in the first half with ten points apiece.
Fordham regained its scoring touch after the intermission, tallying the half's first five points and opening the period on an 11-1 run to pull ahead 39-26 with 11:34 to go. Rooney nailed two three-pointers for the Rams over that stretch and the defense held URI without a field goal for nearly 11 minutes in total.
Rhode Island showed some life after that, trimming the Fordham lead to five on an 8-1 run with just under two minutes to go. With the advantage at only a handful, Arielle Collins connected on a jumper from behind the arc and put Fordham back up by eight, 48-40 with just over a minute left in the game.
Rhody cut the lead to six on the ensuing possession, but Strickland and Rooney combined for three free throws down the stretch, sealing the victory.
Rooney led the Rams in scoring once again on the evening, pouring in 18 points and grabbing six boards.
Marah Strickland was the only other Fordham player in double figures, tallying 14 points.
On the boards, Samantha Clark pulled in 11 rebounds, including six on the offensive glass, and Corning corralled eight.
Tayra Melendez led URI with 13 points.
In one of the stranger stat lines you'll see this season, Fordham shot only 25 percent from the floor, a season-low. Fordham, however, couldn't miss from three, draining ten of their 20 attempts from beyond the arc.
The Rams are back in action this coming Sunday, February 24th, when they host St. Joe's on Senior Day in the Rose Hill Gym. Be sure to come cheer on Marah Strickland, Arielle Collins, Charlotte Stoddart and Ranait Griff in their second-to-last home game in a Rams' uniform as they fight for crucial seeding in the Atlantic 10 Tournament.
