Women's Basketball - Tuesday 11/17/2009 [Box Score]
Center Danielle Scott was a key point for EMU's offense and finished with 10 points and 9 rebounds.
Royal Women Hold Off Fighting Squirrels
The Eastern Mennonite women's basketball team opened up their 2009-2010 campaign Tuesday night by hosting Mary Baldwin. The Royals, still nursing a few injuries, jumped out to a big lead but then had to hold on for a tight win, 55-53, over the Fighting Squirrels.
After going back and forth with Mary Baldwin early, EMU jumped from a 13-13 game to 33-20 halftime lead.
In the second, the Royals pushed to their biggest lead with 14:36 left on a three-pointer from freshman Danielle Rittenhouse (Lancaster, Pa./Lampeter-Strasburg), making it 46-22. But the Squirrels fought their way back, exploding on a 17-2 run over the next 4:22 to get within single digits, 48-39.
Mary Baldwin kept pushing over the final ten minutes and had a chance to win, but Denise Johnson missed a three-pointer in the final seconds and point guard Melissa Lewis (Stuarts Drafts, Va./Stuarts Draft) scooped up the rebound to seal the 55-53 win.
Rittenhouse made the most of her first game in a Royal uniform, leading all scorers with 18 points. Danielle Scott (Summit, NJ/Summit) had a strong first half and finished with 10 points and 9 rebounds. Freshman Sara Lamneck (Swoope, Va./Buffalo Gap) also got the start and impressed in her first game, grabbing a game high 12 rebounds.
Iiesha Ricks and Sabrina Desper had 12 and 11 points, respectively, to lead Mary Baldwin.
The game featured 59 total turnovers, 30 for the visitors and 29 for EMU. The Royals shot 32% from the floor and just 2-11 from long range, but made up for it by hitting 15 of 21 free throws.
Eastern Mennonite moves to 1-0 to start the season and next hosts the EMU Tip-Off Classic on Friday, Nov. 20, and Saturday, Nov. 21. The Royals play the late game each day - Friday vs. Meredith at 8:00pm and Saturday vs. John Jay at 4:00pm. Virginia Wesleyan plays John Jay at 6:00pm on Friday and Meredith at 2:00pm on Saturday.
After going back and forth with Mary Baldwin early, EMU jumped from a 13-13 game to 33-20 halftime lead.
In the second, the Royals pushed to their biggest lead with 14:36 left on a three-pointer from freshman Danielle Rittenhouse (Lancaster, Pa./Lampeter-Strasburg), making it 46-22. But the Squirrels fought their way back, exploding on a 17-2 run over the next 4:22 to get within single digits, 48-39.
Mary Baldwin kept pushing over the final ten minutes and had a chance to win, but Denise Johnson missed a three-pointer in the final seconds and point guard Melissa Lewis (Stuarts Drafts, Va./Stuarts Draft) scooped up the rebound to seal the 55-53 win.
Rittenhouse made the most of her first game in a Royal uniform, leading all scorers with 18 points. Danielle Scott (Summit, NJ/Summit) had a strong first half and finished with 10 points and 9 rebounds. Freshman Sara Lamneck (Swoope, Va./Buffalo Gap) also got the start and impressed in her first game, grabbing a game high 12 rebounds.
Iiesha Ricks and Sabrina Desper had 12 and 11 points, respectively, to lead Mary Baldwin.
The game featured 59 total turnovers, 30 for the visitors and 29 for EMU. The Royals shot 32% from the floor and just 2-11 from long range, but made up for it by hitting 15 of 21 free throws.
Eastern Mennonite moves to 1-0 to start the season and next hosts the EMU Tip-Off Classic on Friday, Nov. 20, and Saturday, Nov. 21. The Royals play the late game each day - Friday vs. Meredith at 8:00pm and Saturday vs. John Jay at 4:00pm. Virginia Wesleyan plays John Jay at 6:00pm on Friday and Meredith at 2:00pm on Saturday.