BULLDOGS COMPLETE COMEBACK WITH LATE SECOND-HALF RALLY, DOWN HOLY CROSS, 59-47, SUNDAY AFTERNOON

12/19/10

SMIHFIELD, R.I. – Down by 10 points with just over eight minutes to play in the contest, the Bryant University women's basketball team went on a remarkable 17-0 run as the Bulldogs stormed back to down Holy Cross, 59-47, Sunday afternoon at the Chace Athletic Center.

With the Crusaders on top, 46-36, at the 8:00 mark, sophomore Danielle Douglas (Silver Spring, Md.) sparked the run with a jumper and driving layup. After a free throw by Siamone Bennett (Newburgh, N.Y.), freshman Courtney Schissler (Branford, Conn.) hit a 3-pointer to trim the lead to just one point. Bennett was then able to get to the line again and hit a pair of free throws for the late advantage. On the next play and with the momentum in Bryant's favor, Meredith Soper (Winthrop, Mass.) drilled a 3-pointer to pad the lead to four as the home squad held on for the eventual comeback victory.

Douglas led all scorers and matched a career-high with 19 points while Bennett added nine tallies and freshman Naana Ankoma-Mensa (Brampton, Ontario) pulled down nine boards. As a team, the Bulldogs shot 39 percent from the floor while Alex Smith and Amy Lepley led the Crusaders with 14 and 12, respectively.

The Bulldogs improved to 3-7 on the season and 1-4 against Holy Cross all-time while the Crusaders dipped to 4-6 overall.  

Bryant wasted no time in establishing control of the game as the Bulldogs opened with a 14-4 run, highlighted by Douglas, who hit her first four shots which ranged from deep jumpers to driving layups through the Crusader defense. The run also featured an impressive three-point play from Bennett as the senior spun through traffic while in the paint, ending with a layup down low on the drawn foul.   

Despite the early disadvantage, the Crusaders began to climb back into the game by means of Lepley. The sophomore first halted Bryant's opening run with back-to-back baskets and then mimicked Bennett's earlier drive with a conventional three-point play of her own to cut the lead to five points. With momentum in hand, Holy Cross hit three straight jumpers, the last of which by Whitney Fremeau to put the visitors on top, 20-18, with 7:30 left in the first half.

The Bulldogs then turned back to Douglas for another basket but the Crusaders continued to make mid-range shots and pick up timely steals to maintain the slim lead.

Bryant ended the half in strong fashion, however, as Lindsey Hudspeth (Mount Laurel, N.J.) drilled a 3-pointer from the corner. A few possessions later, Demetria Bell (Braintree, Mass.) knocked down a turnaround four-footer in the paint to tie up at 27-27 going into halftime.

At intermission, the Bulldogs were led offensively by Douglas who went 5-for-7 from the floor for 10 points while Brittany Stahura (Amsterdam, N.Y.) and Ankoma-Mensa each pulled down five boards in the opening half. Lepley led all scorers with 12 points for Holy Cross. As the team, the Bulldogs shot 44 percent from the floor while the Crusaders shot at a 36 percent clip.   

Both teams came out after halftime looking to run which resulted in back-and-forth scoring thanks to a pair of players who were quiet in the first half. Soper drilled a long distance shot to put Bryant on top but Smith answered with a mid-range jumper and a 3-pointer of her own for the 38-32 Holy Cross advantage. 

Following a Bryant free throw, the Crusaders maintained their five-point lead over the next four minutes despite an impressive putback by Bell after back-to-back offensive rebounds, keeping the Bulldogs within reach.   

The Crusaders began to pull away midway through the half when Smith hit consecutive 3-pointers to increase the Holy Cross lead to 10 points but Douglas quickly quieted the visitor bench with a fade-away jumper to spark the monumental run. Following Soper's trey to give the Black and Gold a four-point advantage, Bennett sunk another free throw and Schissler hit a jumper before a Christine Granger free throw broke up the run.

The Bulldogs outrebounded the Crusaders by a margin of 39-31 and committed 20 turnovers to Holy Cross' 23.

The Black and Gold return from the holiday break on Dec. 30 when they travel to the Carrier Dome to take on Big East affiliate, Syracuse at noon.