BROOKVILLE, N.Y. – Freshman Alexius Hampton (Charlotte, N.C.) scored a career-high 14 points, but the Saint Anselm College women's basketball team dropped a 62-56 decision against Dowling College on Saturday afternoon at the LIU Post Winter Classic at the Pratt Recreation Center.
The Hawks, who were playing their first game since Dec. 6, drop to 4-6 on the season, while the Golden Lions improve to 6-2.
In addition to her career performance in points, Hampton set new career bests in field goals (5), field goal percentage (.500), 3-point field goals (2), 3-point field goal percentage (.667), free throws (2), free throw percentage (1.000), rebounds (2) and minutes (29), and also matched her career high with a pair of assists. Senior Curran Leighton (Dover, N.H.) and junior Briana Jones (White Plains, N.Y.) were also in double figures for Saint Anselm. Leighton netted 11 points on 4 of 8 shooting, including 3 of 5 from deep, to go along with six rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a steal. Jones added 10 points, three boards and a pair of assists.
A 3-pointer by junior Kierra Moore (Albany, N.Y.) gave the Hawks their largest lead of the contest at 5-2 just 2:15 in, but an 8-0 spurt – with four points from Danielle Wilson – gave Dowling a 10-5 lead at the 15:01 mark. After a pair of free throws by sophomore Allie Jones (So. Kingstown, R.I.), Julia Koppl knocked down a 3-pointer and the Golden Lions led by six – 13-7 – with 14:26 remaining.
The lead was still six less than four minutes later when junior Ashley Viselli (Groveland, Mass.) nailed a jumper to cut it to four, but another Koppl trey widened the Dowling advantage to seven at 20-13 with 8:19 to go in the opening half.
Viselli answered by sparking a 7-0 run that knotted the game at 20-all with 4:43 to play. Viselli's trifecta was followed by baskets from Moore and Allie Jones. A Wilson jumper stopped the bleeding, but a Hampton 3 on the ensuing possession gave Saint Anselm a 23-22 edge with 3:54 on the clock. The lead was still one when Christine Verrelle banged a 3-pointer as time expired to send Dowling into the locker room with a 31-29 lead.
The Golden Lions roared past the Hawks out of the gate in the second half, using a 16-3 run – with 10 points from Wilson – to grab a commanding 47-32 lead – their largest of the day – just 5:11 in.
After the teams traded baskets, an Allie Jones jumper, a pair of free throws from Hampton and a layup by Leighton whittled the Saint Anselm deficit down to nine at 49-40 with 11:01 remaining. The lead was still nine at the 6:29 mark when Leighton buried a 3 to trim the Dowling lead to 53-47.
A Connie Simmons layup nudged the lead back to eight, but back-to-back 3s from Hampton and Leighton, followed by a free throw from Allie Jones, pulled the Hawks within one at 55-54 with 3:16 to go. Dowling answered with a 3-pointer from Verrelle and a layup from Wilson, however, to seize a 60-54 lead with 1:45 on the clock. Briana Jones sank a pair at the line nine seconds later, but Koppl matched that with a layup that closed the scoring with 1:25 to go.
Allie Jones posted nine points and seven rebounds, while Moore and Viselli each chipped in five points.
Dowling outshot Saint Anselm, 43.6 percent (24-55) to 39.6 percent (21-53), while the Hawks held a 41.2 percent (7-17) to 31.3 percent (5-16) advantage from beyond the arc. The Golden Lions outrebounded the Hawks, 34-32, and outscored them in the paint, 32-20. Dowling also turned the ball over 16 times, while forcing 19 Saint Anselm turnovers.
Wilson led Dowling with a game-high 23 points.
The Hawks return to action Saturday, Jan. 5 at 1:30 p.m. when they take on Bentley University. The next home game for the Hawks is Saturday, Jan. 12 at 1:30 p.m. when they play host to American International College at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium. Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department by liking us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/STAHawks) and following us on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/STAHawks).
