Women's Basketball Leads Wire to Wire Against Albany

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Bronx, N.Y. – A little over 24 hours after playing its last game, the Fordham women's basketball team bounced back with an impressive 71-42 victory over the University at Albany on Tuesday afternoon, the team's final nonconference contest, finishing a stretch of three games in five days. With the win, the Rams improve to 3-2 overall, while the Great Danes fall to 2-4.
 
"Super proud of our kids to not only finish 3-1 in our nonconference games, but also how disciplined they have been during these difficult times to even be able to play games." Head coach Stephanie Gaitley said, "I think this defensive performance today will help us as we head into conference play. We all want to wish our entire Ramily a Happy and Healthy Holiday!!"
 
Fordham's defensive effort was evident from the opening whistle, holding the Great Danes to just 16.0% shooting from the field in the first half (4-of-25), holding a 37-11 lead at the interval. The Rams used an explosive 21-7 second-quarter surge to get there, shooting 9-of-13 from the floor, including 3-of-4 from deep. Senior Kendell Heremaia had a double-double at halftime. UAlbany came out swinging in the third, taking the frame, 19-12, but the Rams turned things around in the final frame, 22-12.
 
For the third time in three wins, Fordham never trailed. The closest the Great Danes got was within two midway through the first, 6-4. Heremaia kicked the game off with a three and drilled another two possessions later following a stingy opening three-plus minutes for both teams. Following that Ellen Hahne layup, the Rams shut down their opponent for the remainder of the period, going on a 10-0 run to close the frame, capped by a Maranda Nyborg that led to a late Anna DeWolfe floater.
 
That run reached 16-0 following long-range makes from Matilda Flood and DeWolfe, making it a 22-4 game. At the 4:43 mark following a Heremaia trey that made it 27-6, Albany called a timeout. A Megan Jonassen open layup under the basket off a slick pass from Heremaia and a DeWolfe jumper capped the first-half scoring at 37. The Great Danes got within 20 points at the end of the third following a Grace Heeps three.
 
Hahne started the fourth with a layup for the visitors, which made it a 17-point game, but the Rams launched into a quick-fire 7-0 run started by DeWolfe's jumper and finished off with a Flood fastbreak triple following a Sarah Karpell steal, forcing UAlbany into a timeout. The deficit never fell below 20 points and ballooned to its largest at the end – a Ralene Kwiatkowski triple off a pass from Riley DeRubbo, who made her Fordham debut along with Megan Bodziony.
 
The Rams shot 49.1% from the floor, making a season-high 27 shots, while dominating the glass for a fifth straight game, 38-21, including 10 on the offensive glass. Fordham committed a season-high 13 turnovers, while tallying season-highs of 19 assists and eight steals.
 
DeWolfe led the way with a game-high 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting, her fourth 20-point-or-better effort this year. Heremaia finished with a 13-point, 13-rebound double-double, while Jonassen produced her second straight double-digit game, finishing a rebound shy of a double-double to go with 12 points. Kaitlyn Downey enjoyed an all-around game of four points, seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals over 25 minutes. Joining her with four assists apiece was DeWolfe and Heremaia. DeWolfe had a game-high three steals, while Downey and Nyborg each had two steals, the latter also swatting two shots.
 
The Rams are off for the holidays but return for two more home games to round out a five-game home stretch, hosting George Mason on New Years Day at 1 p.m. and George Washington two days later at 2 p.m.