Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham women's basketball team kicked off its 2018-19 campaign with a bang, downing Wagner, 80-59, inside the Rose Hill Gym on Friday night behind a blistering start and redshirt sophomore
Bre Cavanaugh's first career double-double. With the win, the Rams begin the year 1-0, while the Seahawks fall to 0-2.
"It's always good to get your first game and first win in the books," Head coach
Stephanie Gaitley said, "We showed some solid offense and played hard. We need to tighten up the defense and then we will be a tough match-up."
Fordham came out firing on Friday, scoring 30 points on 61.1% shooting from the floor over the first 10 minutes, including 66.7% from behind the three-point arc (6-of-9). Cavanaugh answered a pair of Wagner two-pointers with a pair of triples to give the Rams a lead they wouldn't relinquish starting at 6-4. Fordham led by as much as 15 points in the opening period, beginning the contest on a 21-6 run. Cavanaugh and
Kendell Heremaia combined for the team's first 14 points, with the duo each hitting their first two long-range attempts. By the end of the first 10 minutes, Cavanaugh led all players with 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting and Heremaia had eight on a perfect 3-of-3 from the floor.
The Rams struggled with their shot in the second quarter, shooting a combined 23.5% from the floor (4-of-17) and 6-of-12 from the charity stripe but were outscored by just one, 17-16, by their opponents. Fordham took a 46-34 lead into the halftime break.
The defense shut down the Seahawks in the third quarter, limiting them to just six points on 1-of-10 shooting from the floor, while the Rams hit 7-of-18 shots (38.9%). With a 26-point lead and the benches beginning to clear, the Seahawks edged the hosts, 19-14, in the final period of the eventual 21-point win.
Cavanaugh led the way with her first career double-double, tallying 20 points and 10 rebounds, four on the offensive glass, to go with two steals and three three-pointers. Three other Rams finished in double figures, led by Heremaia's career-best performance with new personal marks of 13 points and five assists while matching her previous high of seven rebounds. Freshman
Kaitlyn Downey scored 12 in her collegiate debut, hitting 4-of-6 from the floor and 4-of-7 from the line to go with five boards, an assist, and a steal. Senior
Mary Goulding chipped in 10 points, seven boards, four dimes, and a pair of steals over 22 minutes. Rounding out the starters,
Lauren Holden added nine points, three assists, three steals, and a pair of boards over a team-high 36 minutes.
Zara Jillings and
Vilisi Tavui each chipped in four points off the bench, the latter doing so in her Fordham debut. Tavui added a pair of steals, rebound, and assist. Also making their debuts were fellow freshmen
Chloe Chaffin, with one point and three rebounds,
Catherine Polisano, with three points, and
Megan Jonassen, who had two points and two offensive boards.
Fordham outrebounded Wagner, 42-23, including on the offensive glass, 16-5. The Rams enjoyed an assist-to-turnover ratio of 19-11, while the Seahawks had 13 compared to 15. Fordham shot 40.9% from downtown on 22 attempts, 43.3% overall, and 70.4% from the line (19-of-27).
Fordham had just one 80-point game a year ago, scoring 85 in a double overtime loss at Saint Louis, and hasn't scored 80 points since putting up 85 against Davidson on January 4, 2017.
The Rams have a quick turnaround for their first road contest of the year, playing at Northeastern on Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.
