DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. -- The Daemen University women's basketball team topped the Mercy Mavericks 78-62 in the Wildcats' final East Coast Conference game before Christmas on Sunday afternoon. After losing their first game of the season against St. Thomas Aquinas in Friday night's overtime thriller, the Cats get back into the win column and move to 7-1 on the season and 2-1 in ECC play with the victory. The Mavericks drop to 5-6 and a 2-2 conference record.
The Wildcats have now won 14 straight matches against Mercy, dating back to Feb. 13, 2016.
Junior guard
Gabby McDuffie (Buffalo, N.Y.) led the team with a season-high 19 points on the day, shooting 47-percent from the field (7-of-15) and 33-percent from beyond the arc (2-of-6). She drained all three free throws, pulled down two offensive boards and a defensive rebound and tallied a team-high five assists in the win. Mercy senior Taysha Bender led all scorers on the day, totaling 22 points with a 41-percent field goal percentage (7-of-17) and going 2-of-3 from three in the Mavericks loss.
Daemen put together a strong second half, outscoring Mercy 45 to 26 in the final two quarters to come away with the win. The Cats shot 62-percent from the field in the fourth quarter (8-of-13) and knocked down 4-of-7 three point shots in the fourth.
IMPACT PLAYERS
- Junior guard Alahna Paige (Rochester, N.Y.) banked 4-of-7 from the field and a three-ball and finished with 14 points in the win. She snagged four defensive boards and tallied two steals and two assists.
- Junior forward Natalie Angeletti (Panama, N.Y.) scored 11-points and a game-high eight rebounds, snagging six defensive boards and two O-boards.
- Junior forward Kaytlyn Matz (Johnsburg, Ill.) scored 13 points on the day, shooting 40-percent from the field (4-of-10) and 60-percent from three (3-of-5).
GAME NOTES
- Daemen's 14-straight wins is the second longest winning streak in program history. The Wildcats' longest streak is 18 straight games against D'Youville.
- The Wildcats finished the game with a 46-percent field goal percentage (26-of-57) and 47-percent from three (8-of-17).
- After missed free throws played a major part in Daemen's one-point loss to St. Thomas Aquinas on Friday night, the Wildcats banked 18-of-19 for a season-high 95-percent from the line.
- For the third straight game, the Wildcats trailed after the first quarter, down 23-14 after the first 10 minutes of play.
- Daemen outscored the Mavs 19 to 13 in the second quarter to bring the game within three points. The Cats trailed 36-33 at the half.
- McDuffie and Matz led all Daemen shooters after the first two quarters with 10 points a piece.
- Angeletti pulled down two of Daemen's four offensive boards in the first half.
- McDuffie and freshman guard Shyla Montgomery (Brockton, Mass.) each recorded two first half steals.
- Paige Emborsky (Newfane, N.Y.) recorded zero first half points.
- A late turnover in the final seconds of the third led to a Montgomery layup to tie the game at 49 a piece after three quarters.
- Daemen turned up the heat in the fourth quarter, going on a 15-5 run in the first five minutes of the fourth to take the lead.
UP NEXT
The Wildcats return to non-conference play when they take on Saint Anselm on Sunday, Dec. 18 at noon.
Daemen University features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 17 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.
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