Box Score JERSEY CITY, N.J. – Fairleigh Dickinson defeated Saint Peter's 76-59 in a non-conference women's basketball contest on Wednesday night.
Alyssa Velles (Franklin, Conn./Norwich Free Academy) paced the Peacocks (0-7) with 11 points on 5-of-13 shooting. Sajanna Bethea (Levittown, Pa./Pennsbury) recorded 10 points and a team-high eight rebounds while Marcia Senatus (Roselle, N.J./Trenton Catholic) and Bridget Whitfield (San Diego, Calif./La Costa Canyon) finished with nine points apiece.
Kelsey Cruz paced the Knights (3-5) with a game-high 24 points. Erika Livermore tallied 16 points and 13 rebounds in the victory.
Fairleigh Dickinson used a late second half run to pull away for its third victory of the season.
Saint Peter's opened up the game with a 6-0 lead, powered by back-to-back field goals by Whitfield. The Knights countered with four unanswered points, but the Peacocks responded with a 7-0 run to hold a 13-4 advantage with 14:22 remaining in the half.
Fairleigh Dickinson cut into the deficit, using seven unanswered points from Cruz to only trail 13-11. After exchanging baskets, with Saint Peter's still ahead 24-19, the Knights used a 5-0 run to knot the game at 24 with 6:17 on the clock.
The Peacocks regained the lead with three straight field goals to hold a 30-24 edge. Following a basket from Cruz, Bethea hit a tough layup to extend the lead. After the media timeout at the 2:53 mark, Fairleigh Dickinson ended the half on an 11-2 run to take a 37-32 lead into the locker room.
Saint Peter's opened up the second half with consecutive 3-pointers to hold a 38-37 edge. The Knights answered with an 8-0 spurt to take a 45-38 advantage with 16:55 left in the game.
The Peacocks stopped the run with a basket from Senatus at 16:19 to cut into the margin. Following a field goal from the Knights, Saint Peter's used four unanswered points to trim the deficit and only trail 47-44. Fairleigh Dickinson countered with three straight points to extend its lead.
Saint Peter's cut into the margin with two straight baskets from Antonia Smith (Bronx, N.Y./Dwight School) to get within a basket of tying with 10:57 remaining in regulation. The Knights responded with a 7-0 run, capped off by bucket from Livermore to take a 57-48 lead.
Following a pair of charity tosses from Smith, Fairfield Dickinson drilled a 3-pointer to extend its lead to double-figures. Saint Peter's cut the deficit back to single digits with a trey from Velles to trail 60-53 with 6:53 left on the clock.
Fairleigh Dickinson used a 16-6 run over the final 6:14 to pull away and win the non-conference clash, 76-59.
Neechelle Ingram (Pocono Summit, Pa./Pocono Mountain East) finished with six points and six rebounds while Hala Mostafa (Cairo, Egypt/Modern Narmer Language School) recorded four points, seven rebounds and two blocks.
Saint Peter's returns to action on Dec. 20, when the team travels down to Maryland for a non-conference matchup against former MAAC-opponent Loyola (Md.). Game time is slated for 5 p.m.