Box Score
Box Score
WORCESTER, MA – Despite a combined 25 points from Kayla Grimme (Altoona, PA) and Kylla Champagne (Paterson, NJ), the Manhattan College women's basketball team was unable to overcome its struggles from long range on Saturday afternoon. The Jaspers (4-5) shot just 6.3 percent (1-of-16) from three-point land, as Holy Cross (3-7) notched a 58-44 victory at the Hart Center.
The Jaspers took an early 8-3 lead on three Grimme layups and another by Champagne, but the Crusaders responded with an 11-0 run to go up 14-8. However, Grimme and Champagne each added another bucket before the first quarter concluded, and Manhattan trailed by just two, 14-12, after one period. The Jaspers were held to five points in the second quarter, though, as Holy Cross ended the first half on a 14-4 run to take a 30-17 advantage into the locker room.
Holy Cross extended its cushion to 34-17 early in the third quarter before Grimme, Nyasha Irizarry (Brooklyn, NY) and Champagne each hit a layup during a 6-0 Manhattan rally that brought the Jaspers back within 11 points, 34-23. It was still an 11-point game, 39-28, with 3:32 left in the third quarter when Holy Cross went on a 9-2 spurt to end the period.
A three-pointer by Lisa Mifsud on the first possession of the fourth quarter gave Holy Cross its largest lead of the game, a 51-30 cushion. The Crusaders still held a 21-point edge, 57-36, when a Mikki Guiton (Schwenksville, PA) layup with 3:14 remaining started a game-ending 8-1 Manhattan run. Maeve Parahus (Congers, NY) hit a layup with four seconds left to cap the scoring, as the Jaspers' two-game winning streak came to an end with a 58-44 defeat.
Grimme finished with 13 points, seven rebounds and two blocks, while Champagne tallied a career-high 12 points on 6-for-7 shooting to go along with five boards and two steals. Amani Tatum (Cambria Heights, NY) handed out four assists, and Blake Underhill (Edgewater, NJ) distributed three assists. Overall, Manhattan shot 34 percent (17-of-50) from the field and 75 percent (9-of-12) at the free throw line.
Mifsud had a game-high 14 points and added four assists for the Crusaders. Infiniti Thomas-Waheed contributed 12 points, while Molly Hourigan posted 10 points, five rebounds and three steals. Maggie Locke also grabbed five boards, and Katie Doherty dished out five assists for Holy Cross. The Crusaders went 21-for-46 (45.7 percent) from the field, including 8-for-16 (50 percent) from long range, and 8-for-16 (50 percent) at the charity stripe.
After taking nearly a week off for final exams, the Jaspers return to Draddy Gymnasium on Friday for a 7 p.m. tilt with defending Northeast Conference champion St. Francis Brooklyn (1-6). It will be Manhattan's only home contest in a seven-game stretch.
NOTES: Manhattan played Holy Cross for the fifth consecutive year and visited the Hart Center for the second straight time…The visiting team had won each of the last four matchups between the teams…The Crusaders lead the all-time series 13-9…It was the Jaspers' only game in a 10-day period…Champagne's previous career-high was 11 points against Iona on Jan. 9, 2015…Crystal Ross (Philadelphia, PA) played in her 100th collegiate game (91 at James Madison, nine at Manhattan) on Saturday…Underhill grew up in Ashland, MA, about 20 miles away from the Holy Cross campus…Manhattan finished even with its opponent in rebounds for the first time this season.
