Photo courtesy of Ramapo Athletics
Ramapo College’s women’s basketball team hosted Farmingdale State, Bryn Athyn and Jonhson & Wales for the two-day Roadrunner Tip-Off Tournament last weekend. Two rounds took place on Friday night, Nov. 15, with Farmingdale State defeating Johnson & Wales, 73-64, and Ramapo securing a victory against Bryn Athyn, 73-36.
The consolation and championship games occurred on Saturday afternoon. Johnson & Wales gained one win against Bryn Athyn, 72-55, and Ramapo collected another win in the championship round where they defeated Farmingdale State, 71-46.
With the two additional W’s, the Roadrunners bump their overall record to 4-0 for the season.
Ramapo’s first game on Friday night proved to be an easy win. The Roadrunners began the game with a 12-0 run lasting over five minutes. It wasn’t until 4:24 that the Lions got on the board to attempt a comeback, but they were no match for Ramapo.
By the time halftime rolled around, Ramapo led by 25 points, 39-14, with no signs of them stopping. For the half, Ramapo hit a combined 16-30 and forced 15 turnovers.
In the fourth quarter, the Roadrunners only allowed the Lions to gain eight additional points, which was not enough for them to get anywhere near Ramapo’s lead. The scoreboard read 73-36 when the final buzzer rang as the Roadrunners went 16-35 from the field.
The biggest Roadrunner lead was 71-30, which was achieved in the final minutes of playing time.
Senior Jessica Repasy and junior Alie Wickersheim dominated the court, each posting 12 points in the win. Behind them was senior Cherie Smedile who collected 11 points total, including a team high of five 3-point field goals. The Lady Roadrunners finished shooting 32-65 (49%).
The following morning, the Roadrunners were confident as they entered the championship round of the tournament. However, the consolation match took place first when Johnson & Wales stole Bryn Athyn’s last opportunity to record a win for the tournament. The final score was 72-55.
The final round began at 2 p.m. at the Bradley Center. Surprisingly, Farmingdale State got on the board first, scoring a three-pointer at 9:41. The score remained tight for the rest of the quarter, ending in 16-14, where Ramapo led by two points due to a jumper put out by senior Samantha Rinaldi at 0:54 and a good free throw shot by senior Stacey Porzl with seven seconds left on the clock.
In the first four minutes of the second quarter, the Roadrunners recorded ten points in a mini-run to bump the score up to 26-14. The shots continued being fired as the Roadrunners hit another run 9-0 to end the half on top at 38-18, and the Rams would not be able to catch up in the second half.
The remaining two quarters of the final game of the day went similarly, as Ramapo continued to spread the gap against Farmingdale. In the end, Ramapo snagged the 25-point non-conference win and tournament title with a final score of 71-46.
Prozl posted the team high of 13 points after playing a 29-minute game, along with Repasy and Wickersheim who each also collected 13 points apiece. Repasy also led in rebounds recording 12 to complete the double-double.
Freshman Bridget Cahill’s stats were high as well with 11 points total, grabbing two steals, and dishing out four assists along with Porzl.
For the game, Ramapo shot 27-63 (43%) from the field and forced 12 turnovers. A total of 22 points were collected from the paint, while six were second chance points.
Ramapo’s Repasy was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player on Saturday afternoon after the commence of all four rounds.
Alie Wickersheim was also acknowledged as All-Tournament Team for her efforts over the two-day action.
The Lady Roadrunners have had a great 2019-2020 season thus far, remaining undefeated as they head into game five. With four non-conference victories under their belt, Ramapo will host York College for their next match-up on Wednesday, Nov. 20.
The women’s basketball team are scheduled to play their first NJAC game of the season next Tuesday, Nov. 26 against Rutgers-Newark. The conference action will take place in the Bradley Center for a 5:30 p.m. tip-off.
ksutphin@ramapo.edu
