Release courtesy of ACPHS Athletics
Albany, N.Y. – The Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences women's basketball team (8-0, 2-0 HVIAC) used a suffocating defensive effort to create 20 steals and force 27 turnovers in a 69-57 victory over the visiting College of New Rochelle (7-3, 0-1 HVIAC) in Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference action Sunday afternoon at Albert M. White Gymnasium.
Junior forward Alexa Schooley (Auburn, N.Y.) scored a season-high 23 points to lead the Panthers to their 11th consecutive victory; senior center Kelsey Johnson (Malone, N.Y.) scored 20 points with six rebounds and four steals while junior forward Taylor Sullivan (Troy, N.Y.) notched a 13-point, 13-rebound double-double. The 13 boards represented a season high for Sullivan. Junior guard Megan Serley (Oriskany, N.Y.) led the swarming ACPHS defense with eight steals on the day.
A competitive yet low-scoring first half saw the Panthers trailing 27-25 at halftime as New Rochelle's Ja'Nasha King sank the go-ahead bucket with six seconds to play. Jasmine Brandon had 14 points and six rebounds in the first 20 minutes alone to lead the Blue Angels.
Down by four with 13:30 remaining in the second half, ACPHS utilized four takeaways to spark a 15-0 run that put the Panthers up 55-44 with just under eight minutes to go. The Blue Angels would not get closer than seven points the remainder of the game as the Panthers went on a 7-0 spurt in the final minutes to claim a 15-point advantage and eventually a 12-point margin of victory.
Brandon finished with 26 points, 14 rebounds and five steals for New Rochelle, which also got seven points, 12 rebounds and three blocks from Ja-Leah Ellis. Sophomore guard Morgan Esperti(Charlton, N.Y.) notched four of ACPHS's 20 steals on the day.
The Panthers wrap up a three-game homestand Tuesday against Capital District rival Skidmore College. Tip-off for ACPHS's final home game of 2013 is set for 7:00 pm at Albert M. White Gymnasium.
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Release courtesy of CNR Athletics
ALBANY, NY – The College of New Rochelle opened its 2013-14 HVIAC Conference schedule this afternoon, taking on perennial conference power Albany Pharmacy on the road. In the seventh meeting between the two schools, the Blue Angels held a lead with 13:05 left in the game, before the Panthers emerged with a 69-57 victory.
For the first time in the series, CNR held an advantage at the half against Albany Pharmacy, which has played in the HVIAC Championship each of the last four seasons, winning twice. The closing of the talent gap between the two programs was evident until late foul trouble short circuited the Blue Angel upset bid.
Jasmine Brandon posted game-highs with 26 points and 14 rebounds, adding five steals while tallying her fourth consecutive double-double and her sixth straight game with 20 or more points. Alyssa Pechin added 11 points while Jah-Leah Ellis chipped in with seven points and 12 rebounds.
Alexa Schooley paced three Panthers in double-figures with a team-high 23 points.
Both teams played exceptional defense in the opening stanza, with neither team shooting over 40% from the field. Neither team was able to gain control of the game until the Blue Angels used a 4-0 run to take a three point lead, 20-17, with 4:26 left before the break. CNR did not allow Albany Pharmacy to take the lead for the rest of the first 20 minutes, taking a two point, 27-25, lead into the locker room.
A Brandon layup to open the second half extended the CNR lead to four, their largest lead of the game. The Blue Angels held the lead until a Schooley layup knotted the score at 31 with 16:51 left in the game. Albany led by five, 38-33, with 14:56 left before six straight CNR points gave the Blue Angels their final lead of the game, 39-38, with 13:55 left. CNR maintained the lead until a three pointer by Kelsey Johnson gave the Panthers the lead, 44-42, with 12:06 remaining, a lead they did not relinquish. Albany then embarked on an 11-2 run to open up an 11 point lead. The lead did not drop below seven points and bulged to as many as 15 on the way to the 12 point difference in the final score.
