MONTCLAIR, N.J. – Tied at 50-50 with just 3:07 to play, the William Paterson women's basketball team (11-10, 8-6 NJAC) saw its upset bid fall just short at No. 20/15 Montclair State (19-1, 14-0 NJAC) Jan. 31, 58-52. Junior guard Julie Rovito (Ridgefield Park, N.J./Ridgefield Park) notched her fifth straight double-digit scoring total with a game-best 21 points.
 
Deadlocked at 21-21 at halftime, four lead changes and three ties marked the third quarter before the Red Hawks used an 8-3 burst to carry a 38-33 edge into the final period.
 
Five points by Rovito and a Sierra Strong (Howell, N.J./Freehold Boro) layup erased that deficit, pulling the Pioneers even at 40-40 with 7:38 on the clock. When Montclair State pushed its lead to six (50-44, 4:51), three straight buckets by freshman forward Vianca Soriano (New Milford, N.J./New Milford), senior forward Tori Woetzel (Wyckoff, N.J./Ramapo) and junior guard CeCe Green (Boonton, N.J./Boonton) made it a 50-50 game with 3:07 left. MSU immediately answered with a three-pointer, and the two teams combined for two missed field goals and five turnovers before a Red Hawk free throw made it a two-possession game (54-50, 0:46). A Pioneer turnover, coupled with a 4-for-4 effort from the free-throw line by Montclair State, ended WP's upset hopes.
 
Rovito added four assists and three steals to her 21 tallies. Soriano scored a career-best eight points and Strong added seven tallies and six boards. Woetzel pulled down a team-high seven rebounds.
 
Sophomore forward Alex McKinnon posted 20 points and four assists for MSU. Senior guard/forward Katie Sire added 18 tallies, four assists and four steals.
 
Tied for fifth in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) standings, William Paterson will host ninth-place Rutgers-Newark Saturday, Feb. 3, at 1:00 p.m. Admission is free, as the Pioneers will be selling items and accepting donations at the game for the Play4Kay breast cancer awareness initiative, and will also honor members of the University's seven women's intercollegiate athletics teams at halftime as part of National Girls and Women in Sports Day.
 
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