POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - The Canisius College women's basketball team trimmed a 10-point halftime deficit to two points, but could get no closer as Marist College defeated the Golden Griffins 69-57 in the McCann Arena on Wednesday evening. The Golden Griffins fall to 6-7 on the season and 0-2 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.

Freshman Kayla Hoohuli led Canisius with 14 points, including 4-for-7 from behind the arc. Sophomore Jamie Ruttle had 10 points and seven rebounds while junior Allison Braun had 10 points, five rebounds and four assists.

"For the second straight game, we didn't come out ready to play. It's very hard to come back from a double-digit deficit, especially against Marist," Canisius coach Terry Zeh said. "We are nowhere near where we are worrying about opponents. We're just trying to get better every day.

"We just have to do a better job starting games. I think it's a maturity thing that comes with understanding the intensity necessary at the beginning of conference games."

Canisius took the early 5-2 lead on a deep 3-pointer from sophomore Jen Morabito, but the Red Foxes then held the Golden Griffins without a field goal for the next seven-plus minutes, building a 12-point lead on a 17-2 run. The Griffs would close the gap by scoring seven straight points - two mid-range jumpers from Braun and a 3-pointer from the corner from Hoohuli - to cut the Marist lead to 24-18. Canisius would get the Marist lead down to 28-23 on a 3-pointer from Hoohuli, but the Red Foxes then made three 3-pointers in the final three minutes of the half and held a 10-point lead at halftime.

The Griffs came out of the locker and made three 3-pointers in the opening four minutes of the half - two from Morabito and one from Hoohuli - to force a timeout and cut the Marist lead to 44-40.  After a putback from junior Melissa Gardner made it a two-point game, the Griffs could never get closer the rest of the way. The Red Foxes pulled away on a spurt started by three made free throws from Kristina Danella when she was fouled on a 3-point shot attempt late in the shot clock. Marist then put the game away with three 3-pointers in a three-minute span to build the 12-point lead.

Yarde led Marist (7-6, 2-0 MAAC) with 18 points and 10 rebounds to go along with five assists. Leanne Ockenden had 14 points while Brandy Gang had 12 points. Marist shot 10-for-23 from behind the arc and 45.3 percent overall.

Canisius returns to the Koessler Athletic Center to open its home MAAC schedule this weekend, when the Golden Griffins host Saint Peter's College on Saturday. Game time is set for 2 p.m.

Notes: Marist defeated Canisius for the third straight year in the McCann Arena and seventh consecutive meeting overall... Morabito and Hoohuli have combined to make 30 3-pointers in the last six games and are shooting 54.5 percent in that stretch... Canisius shot 42.9 percent from the floor, the fifth straight game the Griffs have shot better than 40 percent... Canisius had 21 turnovers in the game, the first game they had 20-plus turnovers since Dec. 10, at Ohio State... The 10 points for Braun were a season high... Junior Melissa Gardner had six points and six rebounds in eight minutes off the bench... Ruttle scored in double figures for the fifth straight game... VandeBovenkamp had six or more rebounds for the third consecutive game... Canisius allowed its opponent to make 10 3-pointers for the first time since Marist made 11 on Jan. 3, 2010... Canisius didn't score 60 or more points for the first time in five games... Canisius lost for the first time this season when out-rebounding its opponent