BLOOMFIELD, N.J. – Led by the senior duo of Candace Andrews and Caitlyn Abela, the Saint Anselm College women's basketball team picked up its third-straight win with a 67-61 victory at Bloomfield College on Monday afternoon in Bloomfield, N.J.
Box Score
The Hawks improve to 11-6 overall with the win and return to Northeast-10 Conference action on Wednesday night when they host American International College at 5:30 p.m. Bloomfield falls to 10-6 with the setback.
Andrews and Abela scored 18 points apiece to lead Saint Anselm. Andrews added a pair of rebounds and seven assists, while Abela pulled in seven rebounds to go with four blocks. Senior Kaila Duarte joined them in double-figures with 11 points, eight rebounds and two blocks.
Bloomfield was led by a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds from Zhane Robinson, while Tianna Smith had 15 points and Deja McKenzie added 12 points.
The Hawks jumped out to an early 8-3 lead as Abela connected on a three-pointer at the 7:26 mark of the first quarter. Clairee Putnam extended the lead to 11-3 with a triple of her own just over a minute later, but Bloomfield answered with a 13-1 run to jump out to a 16-12 advantage with 2:07 remaining in the first quarter. Putnam ended the run with another three, and the two teams traded baskets until Bloomfield took a 20-17 lead after one period of play.
Emma Daly opened the second quarter with a three-pointer and Kaila Duarte put the Hawks on top 22-20 with a layup and 8:40 remaining in the first half. The Bears answered again, this time using a 10-0 run to take a 30-22 lead and force a Saint Anselm timeout.
Out of the stoppage, Emma Daly trimmed the deficit to 30-25 with a triple, but Jahniece Jaffe responded with a three of her own for Bloomfield to put the Bears back on top 33-25. After a free throw from Bloomfield, Sara Messler recorded the final basket of the quarter as the Hawks entered the half trailing 34-27.
Saint Anselm opened the third quarter with a 7-2 run, and eventually tied the game at 36-36 after a technical foul was called on Bloomfield. After the Bears took the lead back at 39-38, Abela buried a three in the corner before she assisted on a back door layup to Emma Daly to give the Hawks a 41-38 advantage with 4:23 to play in the third period.
Bloomfield answered with five-straight points to take a 43-41 lead, but Duarte and Andrews hit back-to-back jumpers to pull the Hawks back in front 45-43. Abela would record the final field goal of the quarter as she knocked down another corner triple to give Saint Anselm a 48-44 lead headed into the final period.
The Hawks were able to build a 57-49 lead with 5:41 to play in the quarter by using an 8-2 run capped by an Abela score in transition. Bloomfield would not go away, however, as a layup from Zhane Robinson made it a 57-54 game with 4:27 remaining. Andrews answered with a pullup jumper, and after two freebies by the senior, Andrews drove through the defense and scooped home a layup to give the Hawks a 63-56 lead with only 1:05 to play.
Bloomfield continued to hang around as Tiana Smith banked home a runner and was fouled, and her free throw completed the three-point play that made it a 64-61 game with 25 seconds remaining. The Bears were forced to foul, and Abela and Ali Glennon combined to go 3-for-4 at the charity stripe down the stretch to hang on for the 67-61 victory.
Saint Anselm shot 47.1% (24-of-51) from the floor, 44.4% (8-of-18) from three and 68.8% (11-of-16) from the free throw line in the win. Bloomfield only shot 35.4% (23-of-65) from the field, 20% (3-of-15) from beyond the arc and 70.6% (12-of-17) from the charity stripe. The Hawks held a 39-35 edge in rebounds, but committed 18 turnovers to just 10 for Bloomfield.
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