Box Score EWING, N.J. – The College of New Jersey rallied past Rutgers University-Newark in the second half for a 65-57 New Jersey Athletic Conference win in Packer Hall.
Senior forward
Jade Howard netted 17 of her team-high 21 points in the opening half when the Scarlet Raiders ran out to an 8-point lead before settling for a 29-27 halftime edge. A Howard layup off of a steal and an assist from sophomore guard
Maria Simmons staked Rutgers-Newark to a 27-19 lead with five minutes left in the period. The Raiders would get only a pair of free throws from senior center
Sharee Gordon over the final minutes of the half.
A 3-point jumper by junior guard
Arianna Williams gave the Raiders a 37-30 advantage with 16:35 remaining, but the Lions would not fold.
There were four ties and four lead changes before a jump shot by senior guard Kelly Coughlin put the Lions ahead for keeps at 52-50 with five minutes remaining. Junior guard Angelica Esposito followed with a layup and a 3-point jumper to push the TCNJ advantage to seven points with three minutes remaining.
The Raiders trimmed their deficit to four twice over the final minutes on a trey by Williams and a layup by Gordon, but the Lions made six of six free throws over the final minute and a half to hold onto their lead.
Howard finished with nine rebounds to help Rutgers-Newark dominate the boards, 44-29, but 18 Raider turnovers led to 17 TCNJ points to negate the advantage. Gordon hauled down a game-high 10 rebounds while adding six points. Simmons pulled down nine rebounds, netted seven points and dished off a game-high six assists.
Sophomore guard
Shala Glenn made six of eight shots from the floor on her way to a dozen points and four rebounds. Williams chipped in six points, six rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocked shots.
Esposito, who scored 14 of her game-high 23 points in the second half, made all eight of her free throws as the Lions made 19 of 20 free throws to spell the difference in the game. The Raiders went nine for 17 from the charity stripe.
Coughlin and freshman guard Charlotte Schum tallied 11 points each for the Lions. Coughlin added a game-high four steals while Schum, who made three of three shots from beyond the arc, contributed four rebounds and three assists.
TCNJ knocked down eight of 20 shots from 3-point range while Rutgers-Newark connected on just two of 17.
The Raiders (10-10, NJAC 6-7) dropped their third straight league contest while the Lions (10-10, NJAC 5-8) snapped a 3-game NJAC losing streak to creep within a game of Rutgers-Newark in the conference standings. TCNJ earned a regular-season split with the Raiders. The Raiders are fighting to hold onto sixth place in the 10-team league with five games remaining. The top six teams garner NJAC Championship Tournament berths.
Rutgers-Newark hosts Kean University in an NJAC doubleheader in The Golden Dome Arena on Wednesday night. The women's game tips off at 6 with the men to follow at 8.
