Bryant drops road game to Merrimack on Tuesday

NORTH ANDOVER, MASS. – The Bryant University women's basketball team falls 65-60 in a close to Merrimack on the road on Tuesday night.

Mariona Planes Fortuny tallied 22 points and nine boards, while Mia Mancini registered 18 points, four steals, and converted two from deep.

Game Information
Merrimack 65, Bryant 60
Records: Bryant (3-2) (0-0), Merrimack (1-4), (0-0)
Location:  Hammel Court (North Andover, Mass.)

Key Moment

• Merrimack took a three-point lead with 42 seconds remaining, and the Bulldogs missed the game-tying three.

How it Happened

• Merrimack jumped out to an early 7-2 lead, and the Bulldogs responded with a 7-3 run before the media timeout. Fortuny scored under the basket off of a dish from Nia Scott, and Mancini tallied five (10-9).
• The defense stepped up on both sides, making the first quarter score 12-9 in favor of the Warriors.
• Bryant began the second with five straight points on a Fortuny three-pointer and layup off a nice fine from Martina Boba (14-12).
• The Warriors would then go on a 15-3 run, earning a 27-17 lead with four minutes remaining in the first half.
• The scoring was minimal to end the second quarter, as the Warriors scored four to the Bulldogs two (31-19).
• The Black and Gold came out on fire on both sides of the court. Boba began the second half with a three, and then both teams exchanged layups (33-24).
• Merrimack nailed a corner three, and then the Bulldogs would clamp down defensively and score eight, which was capped off by back-to-back threes from Mancini and Silvia Gonzalez, shrinking the deficit to four (36-32), with six minutes remaining.
• The Warriors outscore Bryant 9-5, resulting in a 45-38 deficit for the Bulldogs, heading into the fourth.
• Both teams made two layups each to begin the fourth, followed by another basket from the Warriors, making the lead nine points with six and a half left (51-42).
• Mancini took over, hitting two from deep and tallying a steal; Fortuny added a tough layup, making it a four-point game and forcing an MC timeout at the five-minute mark (54-50).
• Boba hit a three at 3:41, cutting the lead to two (55-53).
• After a free throw and layup from Fortuny and a Warrior bucket, the deficit was three (59-56).
• Gonzalez fought for a board off a missed Bulldog free-throw, making it a one-point game (59-58).
• No one would score for the next minute and a half before a tie-up was called a personal foul, putting Merrimack on the line for two.
• Both free throws were hit, but Gonzalez countered with a layup (61-60).
• The Warriors would score a layup right after, and the Bulldogs missed the game-tying three, resulting in a 65-50 loss, after two made Merrimack free throws.

Stats

• Fortuny led all scorers with 22 points. She also had nine boards.
• Mancini tallied 18 points and made four from deep.
• Mancini also had four steals.
• Boba registered three steals and converted two three-pointers.
• The Bulldogs forced 28 turnovers and committed 17.
• Bryant shot 38% from the floor, 28% from beyond the arc, and 40% from the line.

Notes

• Fortuny registered her 13^th 20-point game of her career.
• Mancini has scored double digits in every game this season.
• Boba has had a steal in all but one game.
• The Bulldogs are now 2-1 against the NEC.

 Next Up

The Black and Gold head to Florida to compete in the FIU Basketball Tournament.