in D3hoops.com's national poll prior to tip-off against Mt. St. Mary
(NY) in non-conference action Monday evening.
The Lady Royals failed to live up to their lofty ranking by dropping a
69-49 decision, which snapped a 14-game winning streak as Scranton fell
to 15-2 on the season. With the win, the Blue Knights improved to 12-3.
Senior guard *Taryn Mellody (Dunmore, Pa./Bishop O'Hara)* led Scranton,
which suffered its worst loss since a 64-30 defeat to eventual NCAA
Division III champion Washington University (Mo.) in a Final Four game
in Danbury, Connecticut, on March 17, 2000. Junior guard Chantel
Anthony (Middletown, N.Y./Middletown) inflicted most of the damage for
Mt. St. Mary with a game-high 22 points, six rebounds and four assists
and junior guard forward Vanessa Lawson (Kingston, N.Y./Kingston) added
20 points.
To say that nothing went right for the Lady Royals would be an
understatement. For the first time since a 62-58 loss to Williams
College on November 20, 2004, Scranton failed to make a 3-point field
goal, going 0-for-13 from beyond the arc. The Lady Royals weren't much
better inside the arc, shooting only 27.8 percent in the first-half to
fall behind 32-24 at intermission and connected on only 18 of 69 field
goal attempts for the game (26.1 percent).
Mt. St. Mary took advantage of Scranton's inability to find the mark and
quickly built up a double-digit lead early in the second-half. The Lady
Royals managed to cut the margin to eight, 49-41, with 8:22 remaining,
but the Blue Knights, behind five points by Anthony and a key 3-pointer
by senior guard Annie Cossolini (Fanwood, N.J./St. Dominic Academy),
answered with a 10-7 spurt over the next five minutes to take a 63-48
lead with 3:11 left. Scranton managed only one point the rest of the way.
The Lady Royals, who were out-rebounded 47-41, received nine points and
six rebounds from junior forward *Kathleen Daly (Bryn Mawr, Pa./Merion
Mercy Academy)*, who made her first start of the season in place of
injured center *Tiffaney Williams (Scranton, Pa./Scranton)*. Senior
guard *Allison Matt (Allentown, Pa./Allentown Central Catholic)* added
nine points Scranton, which will take on the Aggies of Delaware Valley
College in Freedom Conference action this Wednesday, January 24, at the
James Work Arena in Doylestown, Pennsylvania.
Junior forward Jackie Markert (Voorheesville, N.Y./Voorheesville) had
eight points and a game-high 13 rebounds for Mt. St. Mary, which shot
41.4 percent from the field, including a very respectable 41.2 percent
from the 3-point arc, and 77.8 percent (14 of 18) from the free throw
line. Tonight's game was the first meeting ever between the two schools.
MT. ST. MARY (NY) 69, THE UNIVERSITY OF SCRANTON 49 THE UNIVERSITY OF SCRANTON (15-2) Mellody, Taryn 8-18 3-3 19; Matt, Allison 2-13 5-6 9; Daly, Kathleen 3-11 3-4 9; Waiters, Tammy 2-5 1-2 5; Thran, Casey 2-6 0-0 4; Mooney, Ryan 1-1 0-0 2; Fabio, Michelle 0-7 1-2 1; Healy, Marisa 0-2 0-0 0; Davis, Claire 0-1 0-0 0; Brophy, Julie 0-0 0-0 0; Remington, Stephanie 0-5 0-0 0. *Totals 18-69 13-17 49*. MT. ST. MARY** (NY) (12-3) Chantel Anthony 8-13 4-4 22; Vanessa Lawson 6-11 5-5 20; LaSheena Brown 4-15 1-5 9; Jackie Markert 3-9 2-2 8; Annie Cossolini 3-6 0-0 8; Christina Zrowka 0-0 2-2 2; Shannon Sangster 0-1 0-0 0; Kelly McCourt 0-1 0-0 0; Jessica Tice 0-2 0-0 0; Cathryn Biordi 0-0 0-0 0. *Totals 24-58 14-18 69*. The University of Scranton.... 24 25 - 49 Mt. St. Mary (NY)............. 32 37 - 69 3-point goals-The University of Scranton 0-13 (Mellody, Taryn 0-7; Matt, Allison 0-2; Davis, Claire 0-1; Remington, Stephanie 0-3), Mt. St. Mary (NY) 7-17 (Vanessa Lawson 3-5; Annie Cossolini 2-5; Chantel Anthony 2-5; Jessica Tice 0-2). Fouled out--The University of Scranton-None, Mt. St. Mary (NY)-None. Rebounds-The University of Scranton 41 (Mellody, Taryn 8), Mt. St. Mary (NY) 47 (Jackie Markert 13). Assists-The University of Scranton 10 (Waiters, Tammy 3), Mt. St. Mary (NY) 13 (Annie Cossolini 5). Total fouls-The University of Scranton 17, Mt. St. Mary (NY) 17. A-650