Women's College Basketball
Rider University 51, Fairfield University 46
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Game
FAIRFIELD, CONN.?Junior Amanda Sepulveda (Perth Amboy) scored a game-high 16 points to go along with seven rebounds in a 40 minute effort as the Rider University women's basketball team won at Fairfield 51-46 on Monday night. “I'm very proud of our kids and the defensive effort," said head coach Lynn Milligan. "Amanda did a good job gutting it out tonight. She led with her actions.”
“We stayed composed,” said Sepulveda. “When the shot clock got down, we didn't panic and were able to stick with the offense. We were able to jump to the ball on defense and the offense came after that.”
With the score tied at 32, Rider (10-18, 7-10 MAAC) went on an 8-1 run, four points by senior Shaunice Parker (Waldorf, Md./West Lake), opening up its largest lead of the night, 40-33 with 7:44 left. Parker finished with four points, three rebounds and three assists.
“When you get solid play from your point guard, it frees up the other players on offense,” Milligan said. “Amanda's job, as a junior point guard who plays a lot of minutes, is to keep the ship calm when things don't go right and have us avoid empty possessions. She made some very good decisions tonight.”
“We came together and encouraged each other,” Sepulveda said. “The fact that we were able to pick each other up in a tough defensive game was the key. I've had an up and down season but I've been working hard in the gym, taking extra shots and tonight I didn't force things and used my teammates more.”
After struggling with her shot much of the season, Sepulveda has led the Broncs in scoring the last three games, 12 points against Niagara, 15 points against Saint Peter's on Saturday and tonight's 16 point effort, leading Rider to two wins while raising her season average to 12.2 points per game.
The Broncs held the Stags without a point for over five minutes midway through the second half before a free throw and field goal by senior Baendu Lowental (Riverside) brought the Stags to within four with 4:30 left. That was as close as Fairfield would get.
Fairfield (17-11, 12-5 MAAC) shot 24 percent in the second half and 26 percent for the game. “You may look at the box score and say that Fairfield had an off shooting night,” Milligan said. “I'm biased. I think it was our defense that caused it. We forced some of their players to take a lot more shots than they are used to.”
This was the second time in the last three games that Rider has held an opponent's offense in the 40's. The Broncs held Niagara to 40 points in a 56-40 win on February 15.
Trailing 21-20, Rider opened the second half on a 6-0 run, the ninth and final lead change, four points by junior Tammy Meyers (Willingboro) taking a five-point lead with 17:28 left in the game. Meyers finished with 10 points and nine rebounds in 39 minutes of action.
Fairfield went on a 9-3 run, tying the game at 32 with 10 minutes left, the fourth and final tie before freshman Sarah Homan (Upper Darby, Pa./Delco Christian) hit two free throws as Rider retook the lead. Homan finished with six points, eight rebounds and two blocks.
“Fairfield is a disciplined half court team,” said Milligan. “They run many, many sets and they don't rush or panic. They are extremely hard to defend which makes what we did tonight that much more impressive.”
In the first half, the Stags led 11-7 before a 7-0 Rider run, three points by Sepulveda, gave the Broncs a 14-11 lead with 6:27 left before halftime. Fairfield responded with a 6-0 run to take a 17-14 lead.
Both teams struggled in the opening period, shooting a combined 16 for 60 from the field and Fairfield led 21-20 at the half. “We told the kids that it would be a chess match,” Milligan said. “It was a defensive battle.” The Stags entered play averaging 61.1 points per game.
Also for the Broncs, sophomore Cintella Spotwood (Trenton/Trenton Central) scored nine points with eight rebounds.
Fairfield out-rebounded Rider 49-47 including 21-14 on the offensive glass.
This is only the third time all-time that Rider has defeated the Stags in 27 tries and the first time that the Broncs have won at Fairfield. The Stags had defeated Rider eight straight times coming into the game including a 67-65 win in Lawrenceville on February 6. “I love firsts,” Milligan added about the first win at Fairfield. “The Fairfield loss was many games ago and we were really more focused on rebounding from the Saint Peter's game on Saturday.”
With the win and Manhattan's loss to Saint Peter's, Rider clinched the seventh seed in the upcoming MAAC playoffs. The Broncs will take on 10th seed Niagara on Thursday, March 5 at noon in Albany, New York. Rider could still tie Siena for sixth place however the Saints defeated the Broncs twice and hold the head to head tiebreaker.
After being the 26th most improved team based on wins last season, Rider entered play as the 61st most improved this season and the 10 wins are the most since the 1999-2000 season when Rider went 14-14. “We've stayed together as a team,” Sepulveda said. “Any outside issues are put aside when we hit the court. We're friends off and on the court and we stayed open minded with each other. Double-digits in wins is awesome.”
“It's a daily process for us to overcome some of the past history,” Milligan said. “The team is going out expecting to win and we need to continue and stick to that process. It is hard to be competitive on a nightly basis and keep that consistency but if we keep working hard, day to day, we will put ourselves in positions to win games and be successful.”
The Broncs complete the regular season with a MAAC game at regular season champion Marist on Saturday night. “Marist is obviously the cream of the crop in the conference,” Milligan said. “It will be a tough challenge and a good test for us but we will be ready.”
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