Box Score 

GLASSBORO, N.J. – Trailing by as many as seven during the second half, No. 8/9 William Paterson (20-1, 8-1 NJAC) scored seven of the final 11 points to get past host Rowan (12-7, 6-3 NJAC), 70-67, in New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) women's basketball action Jan. 30. The win, WP's sixth straight, gave the Pioneers their third 20-win season in the last four years.

Sophomore BriAnna Lucas (Hamilton, N.J./Nottingham) poured in 27 points for the Pioneers, adding five rebounds, six assists and three steals. Senior Erin Cook (Princeton, N.J./Princeton) collected 14 points and eight rebounds, classmate Elisa Brown (Norwalk, Conn./Norwalk) added 13 tallies and eight boards, and senior Julie Haledjian (Montvale, N.J./Pascack Hills) scored 10 points and dished out four assists.

William Paterson seemingly couldn't miss a shot to start the contest, making the first four attempts while racing out to an 18-8 lead. However, Rowan was able to catch fire, knotting the score at 25-25 (6:52) before entering the locker room with a 34-31 advantage. The Profs shot 51.9 (14-27) from the floor while holding the Pioneers to a 37.0 (10-27) percent effort overall. However, William Paterson was able to hang in against Rowan thanks to 7-for-15 (.467) shooting from three-point range.

After Rowan scored the first bucket of the second period, Lucas drained a trey and a layup to tie the contest at 36-36 (18:45). A Haledjian three-pointer briefly gave WP a one-point edge (41-40, 16:59), but the Profs scored eight straight points for their largest lead of the game, 48-41, with 14:37 remaining.

A Cook layup, Lucas free throw and Cook three-pointer pulled the Pioneers within one (48-47, 12:49), but an Amanda Jennings layup gave Rowan a 50-47 edge 23 seconds later. Another three-pointer, this one from Lucas, again tied the score, but Jennings helped scored three of the final five points of a Rowan mini 5-0 run (55-50, 9:30).

A Brown three-pointer and a Haledjian jumper pulled the Pioneers even with the Profs, 55-55 with 6:59 to play, but back-to-back Gina Catanzariti baskets handed Rowan a 59-55 edge less than two minutes later. Lucas drained a three-pointer, her sixth of the game, and later nailed a pair of free throws for a 60-59 William Paterson lead with 4:20 on the clock.

Freshman Lindsey Callander (Branchburg, N.J./Somerville) converted a layup, her only points of the game, for a three-point WP edge (62-59, 3:48), but Jennings answered with two free throws and a layup to once again put the home team ahead (63-62, 2:25). However, that would be Rowan's final advantage of the afternoon, as Brown went 2-for-2 at the free-throw line (64-63, 1:37), followed by a Stephanie Summers (Atlantic City, N.J./Atlantic City) layup (66-63, 1:08) and two free throws from Haledjian (68-63, 0:44).

After a Pioneer foul, Alissa Lamey made both free throws to get Rowan back within a possession (68-65, 0:40). William Paterson then turned the ball over during its next possession, and Catanzariti made the Pioneers pay with a layup for a one-point game with 23 seconds left.

The Profs were forced to foul, and Brown stepped to the line and made both attempts from the charity stripe to again give the Pioneers a three-point lead, 70-67, with 13 seconds left. William Paterson then called a timeout to set its defense, and did not allow the Profs an easy look at the potential game-tying trey during the closing seconds.

Jennings finished with 33 points and 22 rebounds for Rowan, while Michelle Lala and Catanzariti each added 12 tallies. Rowan out-rebounded William Paterson 45-31 and shot 43.1 (25-58) percent from the floor compared to WP's 37.9 (22-58) percent effort. However, the Pioneers were 13-for-29 (.448) from three-point range compared to the Profs' 0-for-11 shooting from beyond the arc.

William Paterson will return to the Rec Center to face Ramapo Wednesday, Feb. 3, at 6:00 p.m.