Box Score
MAHWAH, N.J. – Sophomore
April Smith (Barnegat, N.J./Southern Regional) notched her league-best 12th double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, and junior
Julie Haledjian (Montvale, N.J./Pascack Hills) poured in 17 points of her own, as the William Paterson women's basketball team (18-6, 10-2 NJAC) held off host Ramapo (9-15, 4-9 NJAC) for a 66-63 victory Feb. 14.
The victory kept the Pioneers in the hunt for the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) North Division's top seed in the upcoming conference tournament. William Paterson at 10-2 is tied for first place with Montclair State (10-2), and WP and MSU will finish the regular season Wednesday, Feb. 18, when the two teams square off at William Paterson's Rec Center at 6:00 p.m. The winner of that contest will be the North's top seed in the NJAC Tournament, receiving a first-round bye and hosting a semifinal game Wednesday, Feb. 25. The loser will be the second seed and will host the South Division's third-seeded Rowan in the first round Saturday, Feb. 21.
A 15-2 burst gave William Paterson a comfortable 34-22 lead with 4:22 to play in the first half, but 0-for-4 shooting and three turnovers by the Pioneers during the final moments allowed Ramapo to cut it back to a six-point edge by halftime, 38-32. The Roadrunners shot 53.8 (14-26) percent from the floor compared to WP's 42.9 (15-35) percent effort, but the Pioneers out-rebounded Ramapo 22-13 during the first period.
William Paterson opened up a 14-point advantage (49-35) during the first five minutes of the second half, but the Roadrunners answered with an 8-0 run to come within eight with just over 13 minutes to play. A second run of 10-2 put Ramapo within two points, 53-51 with 8:58 on the clock. The Pioneers could not shake the Roadrunners, never building more than a five-point lead during the game's next seven-plus minutes, until two Smith free throws made it a 65-59 score with 1:18 remaining. Ramapo's Stephanie Cannizzaro put away two free throws of her own and Lindsey Jachens followed with a jump shot to make it a two-point game (65-63) with 47 seconds to play. Following a Pioneer turnover, the Roadrunners missed what would have been a game-tying shot, and Ramapo was forced to foul
Jonnelle Rodriguez (Elizabeth, N.J./Carteret) after she came down with the rebound. Rodriguez sank one of two from the stripe with five seconds left, and Ramapo's Brittany Hoffman was stripped at the top of the key before she could get off a final shot, giving the Pioneers the 66-63 win.
Freshman guard
BriAnna Lucas (Hamilton, N.J./Nottingham) contributed 13 points, sophomore forward
Absatu Mustapha (Somerset, N.J./Franklin) tallied seven points and five steals, and Haledjian dished four assists for William Paterson.
Tiffany China finished the game with 19 points for Ramapo, while Cannizzaro and Lindsey Gripenburg added 12 and 11, respectively.
Ramapo was 9-for-21 (.429) during the second half to finish a combined 23-of-47 (.489) for the contest. The Pioneers were 7-of-24 (.292) during the second half and 22-of-59 (.373) overall on the day.
