North Branch, NJ – The RVCC Lions Women's Basketball team defeated Mercer County College on Saturday afternoon by a final score of 80-61. With the win the Lions improve to 10-4 on the season and Mercer drops to 2-8.
The afternoon started off slowly for the Lions as they saw an eight point first quarter lead drop to just a one point margin at half. A minor halftime adjustment gave the Lions new life and they came out strong in the third quarter outscoring the Vikings 31-14. While the game had some exciting moments, the play of the night came as the buzzer was about to sound to end the third quarter. Alison McGrath hit a pull up jumper with 10 seconds remaining in the period and on the ensuing in bound possession Precious Allah was able to disrupt Mercer's dribble. As the ball went rolling towards the sideline Allah dove head first and managed the throw the pass behind her to a cutting Sonia Guiste who buried a three pointer just as the time expired. The Lions put the game out of reach behind a strong defensive effort, solid rebounding, and the ability to knock down open shots. The Lions hit 15 three point shots on the night. Sophomore Guard, Adrienne Amey, stuffed the stat sheet for the Lions while only playing three quarters. The sharp shooting, pesky defender knocked down five of her seven three point attempts. Amey finished with 19 points, 6 boards, 6 dimes, and 6 steals on the night. The only other Lion in double figures was fellow Sophomore Guard, Olivia Nilsen, who finished with 18 points and 8 boards on the night. RVCC used a well balanced offensive attack as 8 players scored at least 5 or more points. The Lions have relied heavily on scoring from their bench all season long and they've continued to produce. Ali McGrath finished with 9 points, Sonia Guiste and Dyliany De Leon added 6 and Rachel Knappenberger chipped in 5. Moira Phillips has continued to put in a yeoman's effort night after night usually against a much bigger opponent. The Sophomore Forward has proved herself a force on the boards as she's averaging over 8 on the season and pulled down 10 on the night. This was her fifth game this season with double digit boards.
The win gives the Lions their 10th of the season, which makes it back to back years the Lions have eclipsed the double digit win mark before the winter break. The Lions will look for their 11th win this Tuesday as they host the Hawks from Harrisburg Area Community College at 5 PM.