Tigers Remain Undefeated in Conference Play; Defeats USciences 70-41

BOX SCORE


Philadelphia, Pa. - In a rematch of last year's Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) Championship game, the Holy Family University women's basketball team once again came up on top as the Tigers defeated the University of the Sciences by the score of 70-41 in a CACC contest Wednesday night at the Morgan Arena. 
 
Holy Family, ranked 11th in the recent USA Today/ESPN NCAA Division II National Top-25 Coaches' Poll, improves to 11-1 overall and 6-0 in conference play.  The win marked the Tigers 11th straight victory.  USciences is now 5-7 overall and 3-3 in CACC action. 
 
Seniors Ana Cruz (Lititz, Pa./Warwick) and Erin Mann (West Chester, Pa./Villa Maria Academy), who both scored in double-figures, led holy Family offense.  Mann finished with a team-high 18 points and shooting 8-of-15 from the field.  Mann finished one rebound shy of a double-double with a game-high nine rebounds.  She also blocked three shots on the defensive end.  Cruz came away with ten points (3-5 FG) to go along with three rebounds, two assists and one steal.
 
Junior Maggie Serratelli (Bethlehem, Pa./Liberty) came off the bench to contributed eight points, while freshman Erin Fenningham (Philadelphia, Pa./St. Basil Academy) added a career-high seven points.  Junior Katie Duma (Poestenkill, N.Y./Averill Park) grabbed seven boards and sophomore Reagan Jewell (Winooski, Vt./Rice Memorial) added eight rebounds as Holy Family controlled the boards.  The Tigers outrebounded the Devils, 50-32, on the night. 
 
For USciences, sophomore Brianne Traub led all scorers with a game-high 20 points after shooting 7-of-18 from the field, including 4-of-6 from beyond the arc.   She also grabbed eight rebounds.  Senior Elsebeth Birman also scored in double-figures as she finished with 12 points and dished out four assists.
 
Holy Family led from the very beginning after Mann scored the game's first basket and never looked back in the team's one-sided victory.  The Devils trailed by as low as three points midway through the first half after a jumper by Birman made the score 21-18 in favor of the Tigers.
 
However, Holy Family used a 24-5 run the final 9:04 of the half to gain a 22-point advantage heading into halftime.  Junior Mary Ellen McCollum (Abington, Pa./St. Basil Academy) capped the scoring with a jumper to give the Tigers a 45-23 halftime lead.
 
The Holy Family defense limited USciences to 28.6-percent shooting in the first half and forced 11 turnovers to help build its lead.  The Devils shot just below 28-percent for the game and turned the ball over 18 times. 
 
Holy Family finished the game shooting 41.8-percent from the field, including 40.0-percent from deep range (6-15).
 
In the second half, the Tigers swelled their lead to as many as 33 points after Cruz drained a three-pointer to make the score 63-30 at the 9:15 mark of the half.  The Tigers opened the second stanza on an 18-7 run leading up to their 33-point advantage.
 
Holy Family will have an 11-day layoff inbetween its next game.  The Tigers will travel to face West Chester University in a non-conference contest on Sunday, Dec. 30.  Game time is slated for 1 p.m.
 
    
  - HFU -