BRONX, N.Y – Fighting off a near comeback attempt by their opponents late Saturday afternoon, Fordham University women's basketball defeated George Washington 60-55 at the Rose Hill Gym.
Emy Hayford led the Rams on the day with 18 points and six rebounds, along with a pair of assists, while Taylor Donaldson joined her in double figures with 16 points and four rebounds while also nabbing three steals.
"I'm really proud of my team. We showed that we can focus, that we can finish out games, said Head Coach Bridgette Mitchell postgame "That was a challenge for us today, [Nya Robertson] going off for them in the fourth quarter, and us being able to sustain and lock in, I thought it was a really strong team effort by us this afternoon."
Holding a one point lead through the early stages of the first quarter, Fordham saw its first four baskets come from four different Rams, with all of those coming off of an assist. Ending the quarter with four of the last five makes from the floor the Rams would hold a six point lead after ten minutes of play.
The second quarter would see the Rams build on their lead early before the visiting Revolutionaries began to work their way back into the contest. Pulling within one point with less than a minute to go, Fordham would pull their best Tracy McGrady impression as a team, scoring six points in the final 13 seconds of the half. Harris would score three points by converting an and-one attempt, ahead of Emy Hayford nailing a three pointer just before the horn to give her side back a seven point cushion at the break.
Out of the locker room, Fordham would extend its lead to 11 early on, scoring the first four points of the half, and going on to extend as much as a 13 point advantage later in the frame. George Washington would cut that lead down to eight just before the end of the quarter, tallying the final two scores of the quarter.
After Fordham reestablished a double digit lead to start the fourth, the Revolutionaries would begin to battle back, slowly shaving down the score as time ticked off the clock, and drew level at 55-all with just over a minute to go. Forcing the visitors into multiple turnovers down the stretch, the Rams would sink one more field goal and a trio of free throws late to pull away for their second conference victory of the campaign.
Fordham women's basketball heads on the road for two straight games in the DMV beginning Wednesday at George Mason at 7:00 p.m.
