WAYNE, NJ – Senior guard Sabrina Sanchez (Keasbey, NJ/Woodbridge HS) netted 14 points and sophomore forward Courtney Vacca (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Hills) added 10 points, seven rebounds, three blocks, three steals and three assists, but William Paterson posted a 68-58 New Jersey Athletic Conference win in the WPU Rec Center.
NCAA Box Score
The Scarlet Raiders (15-4, NJAC 4-3) rallied from an 18-point second-half deficit on the play of Vacca and senior forward Eni Fageyinbo (Morris Plains, NJ/Parsippany Hills) scored six of her eight points and Vacca score inside twice as Rutgers-Newark reeled off 11 straight points to close the gap to 49-46 with 10:03 left.
But the Pioneers held off the Raiders, finishing the game the same way they had completed the opening half – with a 7-0 run. After Vacca scored inside to make it 61-58 with 2:38 left, William Paterson did not allow another point. Elisa Brown dropped in a jumper before Michelle Pellichero drained a 3-point jumper to give WPU a 66-58 lead with 1:14 left. Pellichero led all scorers with 19 points while Brown finished with 11 points and six rebounds. Forward Asia Brown tallied 14 points, 10 rebounds and six blocked shots for the Pioneers (15-4, NJAC 7-0).
Brown had five points during a 7-0 run to end the first half which staked the Pioneers to a commanding 39-26 lead. Johnson, who finished the half with 10 points, seven rebounds and three assists, capped the spurt with a layup. The Pioneers dominated the boards in the opening period, 21-9. Sanchez, senior guard Nerlande Nicolas (Maplewood, NJ/Columbia) and senior center Stephanie Ross (Nutley, NJ/Nutley) netted six points apiece in the opening period to keep the Raiders in the fray.
A Johnson layup followed by a 3-point jumper by Pellichero upped the Pioneer lead to 44-26 less than a minute and a half into the second half.
The loss snapped a four-game in-conference as well as a five-game overall winning streak by the Raiders.
Rutgers-Newark now hosts Richard Stockton in an NJAC doubleheader in The Golden Dome on Saturday. The women tip off at 5:30 p.m. with the men to follow at 7:30.
