GLASSBORO, NJ – The Rowan University women's basketball team lost to New Jersey City, 76-59 Wednesday evening in a New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) contest.
The Gothic Knights improved to 2-4 and 1-2 in the conference. Guards Kiana Briggs (so. Paterson, NJ/Passaic County Tech) and Ashley Vazquez (jr. Jersey City, NJ/Marist) led New Jersey City, each with 16 points. Vazquez posted 12 rebounds for a double-double. Forward Bria Smith (fr. Bayonne, NJ/St. Dominic Academy) also recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Forward Deseree Johnson (so. Red Bank, NJ/Monmouth Reg.) totaled 13 points and tallied seven rebounds.
The Profs dropped to 1-5 with a 1-2 NJAC mark. Guard Jade Bonder (jr. Williamstown, NJ/Williamstown) paced Rowan with 13 points. Guards Bria Hill (jr. Atlantic City, NJ/Atlantic City) and Kaitlin Schullstrom (so. Colts Neck, NJ/Colts Neck) had 11 and 10 points respectively. Schullstrom recorded nine rebounds, while guard Anyssa Sanchez (fr. Stratford, NJ/Sterling) led the squad with 11 boards.
In the first half, Hill knocked down a jumper to tie the game at 14 with 11:39 remaining. The Gothic Knights went on a 10-1 run to lead by nine (24-15) with 7:04 left. Briggs scored six points in the spurt. Schullstrom hit a three-pointer and forward Allison Murphy (so. West Deptford, NJ/Gloucester Catholic) sank a pair of free throws to narrow the deficit to four (24-20) with 6:02 on the clock. New Jersey City closed the first half with a 13-0 run to lead 37-20 at the break. Guard Mesha Laguerre (jr. Union, NJ/Union) scored five points, while Briggs and Vazquez contributed four points each. Briggs led all first half scorers with 12 points. Schullstrom had eight points for Rowan.
The Gothic Knights led 47-26 after Vazquez nailed a three-point shot with 16:20 to go in the second half. The Profs closed the gap to 17 (47-30) after four straight points from center Kate Matthews (so. Clark, NJ/Arthur L. Johnson). Laguerre converted a jumper with 11:21 remaining to give New Jersey City a 22-point advantage (54-32). Rowan recorded six consecutive points to trail by 16 (54-38) with 8:39 left. The Gothic Knights regained a 21-point lead (70-49) after a layup by Johnson with 3:44 left. Center Ziyadah Williams (fr. Jersey City, NJ/University Academy Charter) ended the scoring with a free throw with ten seconds to go. Bonder led all second half scorers with 11 points. Vazquez paced New Jersey City with nine points.
Rowan hosts Kean University in a conference matchup on Saturday, December 7 at 1 p.m.
