Farmingdale State - 57, Mount Saint Mary - 50
Newburgh, N.Y. - The Farmingdale State women's basketball team traveled to Mount Saint Mary College on Thursday evening for a conference matchup and won, 57-50. The Rams improved to 5-6 overall and 4-1 in the Skyline with the win.
Trailing 6-0 early in the first quarter, FSC junior guard Alexis Antonacci (Plainview, N.Y.) hit a 3-pointer and senior forward Essence Casey (Huntington Station, N.Y.) scored four straight points to put the Rams ahead, 7-6, only 4:19 into the game.
After the Knights (5-4, 4-1) used an 8-2 run to jump in front 14-9, a pair of Kaelyn Ward (East Hampton, N.Y.) 3's gave Farmingdale State a 15-14 lead after one quarter.
In a low-scoring second quarter, FSC outscored Mount Saint Mary, 9-7, and took a 24-21 advantage into the halftime break.
Leading 24-23 early in the third, Ward forced a turnover and hit a 3 at the other end to give the Rams a four-point advantage. The Knights would quickly counter scoring the next four points to tie the game at 27-27.
Over the final seven minutes of the third quarter Farmingdale State outscored Mount Saint Mary 8-7 and took a 35-34 edge into quarter four.
The Rams opened the fourth quarter with seven straight points, including back-to-back 3's by Antonacci and Casey, to open up an eight point lead, 42-34, with 6:24 remaining.
After Knights junior forward Elizabeth Limonta (Stewart Manor, N.Y.) converted a 3-point play on the ensuing possession, senior guard Liz Durchhalter (Franklin Square, N.Y.) hit a 3-pointer at the other end to maintain the eight-point lead, 45-37.
Leading 45-40 with 3:29 left, Farmingdale State used an 8-2 run over the next 2:05 to open up their largest lead of the game, 53-42.
MSMC would outscore FSC by three points, 7-4, over the final 1:24 but it was not enough as the Rams earned the 57-50 conference victory.
Casey led all scorers with 19 points, while also pulling down 11 rebounds and dishing out a game-high five assists. Ward registered her second straight double-double as she finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds and Antonacci recorded 14 points and four assists in the win.
The Knights were led by senior forward Jessica Rini's (Seaford, N.Y.) team-high 12 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks.
FSC next hosts non-conference opponent Albertus Magnus on Saturday, December 16th at 1:00 p.m.
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