Photo courtesy of Ramapo Athletics.
The Ramapo women’s basketball team returned to action for the second time since Nov. 16, taking on Montclair State University. After a heartbreaking loss on Nov. 23 to William Paterson University on a last-second shot, the team was hungry to build on its 3-1 record to start the season. The Roadrunners capitalized on the opportunity, defeating Montclair State 73-66 in a back and forth affair.
The team’s leading scorer, Jada Thompson, built on her strong start to the season in this match with 22 points on 70% shooting. She also recorded seven rebounds and three assists. Thompson was able to take advantage of some foul calls, getting to the free throw line 11 times and hitting eight of those.
Also scoring in double digits for the Roadrunners were Shannon Burns and Bridgett Cahill. Both Burns and Cahill shot efficiently from the field as well, each of them finishing the night 5-9. It was a good shooting night as a whole for Ramapo as the team shot 49% in total. Ramapo also hit as many threes as Montclair State on 11 less attempts, finishing the night 53.8% from behind the arc.
On the defensive side of the ball, Alie Wickersheim locked down the paint, recording a team-high three blocks on the night. Lyndsey Ross led the team with two steals. Even off the stat sheet it was still a good defensive night from Ramapo, holding Montclair State to just 34.3% from the field and only 29.2% from three.
For Montclair State, Megan Duffy led the team with 23 points, assisted by shooting 3-5 from long-distance. Ball distribution kept them in the game, led by Nickie Carter with six. Finally, Kendall Hodges led the Red Hawks in the rebounds department with eight.
The game was tight until the final minutes, with the score being 66-64 in favor of Ramapo with just 24 seconds left. Due to clutch free throw shooting by Cahill, Thompson and Burns, the Roadrunners were able to pull away in the final seconds, shooting 5-8 from the charity stripe in the remainder of the game.
Now with a record of 4-1, next up on the schedule for Ramapo are the 3-4 Stockton University Ospreys. The game will take place on Saturday, Dec. 4 at 3:00 p.m.. It will be a home game for the Roadrunners and a New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) matchup.
bschmid@ramapo.edu
