Cavanaugh, DeWolfe, and Defense Lead Women's Basketball to 13-Point Win over Georgetown

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Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham women's basketball team avenged last season's road loss at Georgetown with a resounding 67-54 win over the Hoyas at home on Sunday afternoon, the team's fifth win in its last six contests. With the victory, the Rams improve to 5-5 overall, while the Hoyas fall to 2-7.
 
"Great team win over a very talented Georgetown team," Head coach Stephanie Gaitley said, "The defense is starting to come together. As we say all the time – 'offense is a bonus'. It's great to see our strong schedule paying off!"
 
Bre Cavanaugh, who recorded her third double-double in the last four games, hit a three-pointer 90 seconds into Sunday's contest, giving Fordham a 5-4 lead. The Rams would never trail again, going up by as many as 23 points, 61-38, midway through the fourth quarter, although the Hoyas closed the margin to 13 by the final whistle. Cavanaugh finished the game with 23 points, matching her season-high, on 7-of-17 shooting, 3-of-9 from deep, and 7-of-10 from the free throw line, along with 10 rebounds, a game-high three steals, and two assists over 39 minutes.
 
Georgetown held two leads in the game, both within the first two minutes. Brianna Jones kicked things off with a jumper, which was answered by Kaitlyn Downey, and Nikola Kovacikova put the visitors ahead with a layup shortly after. An offensive rebound by Kendell Heremaia on the next possession gifted the Rams another attempt, which Cavanaugh converted from the wing. After three-plus minutes of scoreless ball, the redshirt junior drained a mid-range jumper and Georgetown used its first timeout following an Anna DeWolfe baseline jumper, 9-4, with 3:38 to go in the frame. The Hoyas swapped out four of its five starters and rallied to within two, 13-11, with a 9-4 run. Taylor Barnes capped the stretch with a triple but Heremaia notched her first points of the afternoon with a timely three of her own. DeWolfe blew by her defender for a layup with four seconds remaining to give Fordham a seven-point cushion, 18-11, after 10 minutes.
 
Eight unanswered points followed a Jones jumper early in the second on threes by DeWolfe and Downey and a two-pointer by the latter. The hosts' lead stretched to 15 on two occasions and late free throws by Cavanaugh made it a 12-point game at the intermission, 37-25. The Rams defense held the Hoyas to just eight points in the third frame on 3-of-15 shooting, including a 1-of-11 mark inside the arc, but struggled to convert their chances on the offensive end, hitting just 5-of-16 overall. The defense helped pad the lead, though, and Georgetown trailed by 17, 50-33, at the end of the period. Georgetown won the fourth, 21-17, but allowed the Rams to hit half of their attempts from the field, 5-of-10, while Cavanaugh and Downey combined for 6-of-7 on their free throws down the stretch.
 
Fordham outshot the Hoyas, 40.4% to 33.9%, and hit 11-of-15 overall from the stripe. The Rams won the battle of the boards, 36-30, with both teams grabbing 11 on the offensive end. Fordham notched 15 assists, while committing just 13 turnovers and forcing the Hoyas into 14 turnovers.
 
DeWolfe played 37 minutes and scored 18 points on an efficient 7-of-13 shooting, 4-of-8 from behind the arc, with six boards, four assists, and a steal. Downey and Heremaia each finished with four assists, as well, to share the team lead, with the former tallying nine points, seven rebounds, a block, and a steal over 27 minutes. Heremaia scored 10, rebounded nine, and had two steals. Megan Jonassen added five points and three boards off the bench in 11 minutes.
 
The Rams remain at home to host Southern on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. ESPN+ and WFUV 90.7 FM will carry live coverage, as always. Just three games remain before the start of Atlantic 10 play.