WAYNE, N.J. (January 7, 2017) – Senior guard Maria Simmons had 31 points and 14 rebounds to help propel the Rutgers University-Newark women's basketball team to a 72-64 come-from-behind New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) road win at William Paterson University Saturday afternoon.
 
With the win, the Scarlet Raiders improve to 3-4 in the NJAC and 5-9 overall. Paterson drops to 8-6 overall and 3-4 in the league.
 
The Scarlet Raiders will look to get back to .500 in conference play Wednesday night when they host The College of New Jersey in The Golden Dome.
 
Rutgers-Newark was able to overcome a 15-point second quarter deficit in the triumph.
 
Simmons shot 8-for-13 in the second half, going off for 24 of her 31 points and grabbing seven rebounds as well. Simmons tallied five assists and four steals in her 39 minutes. Sophomore guard Faith Ashby had 17 points for the Scarlet Raiders, grabbing seven rebounds, five steals and two assists as well.
 
"We kept fighting early on, and we really did what we had to do in the second half," said Head Coach Ashley Cieplicki after the win. "Maria (Simmons) and Faith (Ashby) made big plays to help seal the win, and the entire team rebounded and defended extremely well down the stretch."
 
The Rutgers-Newark defense held WPU to just 30 points in the second half and 12 points in the fourth quarter. The Scarlet Raiders also committed just six turnovers in the game's final 20 minutes.
 
After falling behind 18-8 after one quarter of play and 23-8 with 8:47 remaining in the second, the Scarlet Raiders closed the first half strong by outscoring the Pioneers 20-11 to get within six points (34-28) at the break.
 
Simmons and freshman guard Louise Ann Borja keyed a 7-0 run to make it a 23-15 game, and after Paterson went back up 11, a jumper from junior forward Nicole Skelly and another Borja triple sliced the lead to six.
 
The two teams would go back-and-forth over the next few trips before Borja's third three-pointer of the half pulled Newark within six points at intermission.
 
Ashby fed junior forward Nikki Sammartino for a bucket that allowed the Scarlet Raiders to get as close as they had been since the opening minute (four), and a Simmons three and Ashby steal and layup tied the game at 44-all with 4:19 to play in the third quarter.
 
Two Sammartino foul shots handed Rutgers-Newark its first lead of the game at 47-46, but it was Paterson that carried a slim two-point 52-50 edge into the fourth.
 
Simmons knotted the game at 52 with the first possession of the fourth quarter, and two Ashby free throws with 6:07 left in the game handed the Scarlet Raiders a lead they would never relinquish.
 
Later, Simmons converted a driving two for a 65-61 Newark advantage with 2:34 on the clock, and a three-pointer from the veteran guard with just 31 seconds left all but locked up the clutch conference win. She scored the last nine points of the contest for R-N.
 
The Scarlet Raiders shot 36.2 percent from the field, a solid 43.8 percent from three and had 10 assists and 14 steals in the game. Borja finished with nine points and four steals, and freshman Autumn Webster had five points and four rebounds. Sammartino racked up six points and three boards, while Skelly pocketed four points and five rebounds.
 
William Paterson shot 37 percent from the field, 40 percent from deep and 74.1 percent at the line.
 
Tip-off Wednesday night at The Golden Dome is set for 6 p.m. and all the action can be seen live at www.rutgersnewarkathletics.com/watch.