Union, NJ: The Kean University women's basketball team earned their first win of the season over Ramapo College, 54-45. The Cougars move to 1-4 overall and 1-1 in the NJAC while the Roadrunners now stand at 4-4 overall and 0-2 in the conference.
Kean took a 9-6 lead into the second quarter before they extended it to an eight-point lead with 4:42 on the clock on a layup from Adriana Misciagna. The Roadrunners then went on an 8-2 run of their own as
Ava Burke collected six of the eight points. Burke capped off the run with a three-pointer to end the half as the Roadrunners cut the Kean lead to just two, 21-19. Ramapo would start the third quarter on another 8-2 run, capped off with a three-pointer from
Lauren Flatt which gave the team a 24-23 lead. The Cougars rattled off a 7-0 run over the next 2:36 of the game as Erika Mercedes capped it off with a layup for a 30-24 score. The Roadrunners converted from the free throw line three out of four times while Mercedes added a layup for a 32-27 lead with 2:01 left in the third quarter. The Cougars started the final quarter of action with the four-point lead as neither team scored in the final two minutes of the third. In the first six minutes of the fourth quarter, Kean extended their lead to 11 with a pair of free throws from Mercedes, 46-35, with 4:21 on the clock. Ramapo then scored five straight points before Kean added four of their own to regain a double-digit lead, 50-40, with 1:01 remaining in the game. Burke connected on a three-pointer with 51 seconds on the clock, cutting the lead to seven. With 40 seconds remaining, Kean converted one of two from the free throw line while Flatt scored a layup with 31 ticks remaining to cut the lead to six, 45-51. Misciagna added a layup and Makaila Desire added a free throw to cap off the scoring for both teams as Kean held on for a 54-45 conference victory.
Burke led the Roadrunners with a season and career high of 19 points which included five made three-pointers. She pulled down six rebounds and added two steals and four assists. Flatt added 12 points, four rebounds and one steal while
Vanessa Kohler contributed with seven points, three rebounds and one steal. The team shot 32% (16-50) from the field, 33% (7-21) from the three-point line and 60% (6-10) from the free throw line in the game. The Roadrunners tallied 18 points off of Kean's 24 turnovers.
Kean was led by Mercedes who posted 27 points as she finished 11-19 from the field while adding seven rebounds, five steals and two assists. Misciagna posted eight points and eight rebounds while Sela Lefler added six points and seven rebounds. The team shot 42% (21-60) from the field, 16% (1-6) from the three-point line and 64% (11-17) from the free throw line. The Cougars scored 19 points off of Ramapo's 20 turnovers while they added 38 points in the paint.
The Roadrunners return to action on Saturday, December 6th when they host Rutgers-Camden University in NJAC action at 1:00 PM. All spectators can get in free by donating to the RCNJ Food Pantry by donating a non-perishable item,
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