Fairfield
shot 51.2 percent from the floor, including 63.2 percent in the first half,
and made nine 3-pointers in defeating the Canisius College women's basketball
team 63-51 in the Koessler Athletic Center. The Golden Griffins fall to 12-15
overall and 6-10 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference
Sophomore
Jamie Ruttle led Canisius with 16
points, including 4-for-6 shooting on 3-pointers. Sophomore Jen Lennox had 11 points in 14 minutes
off the bench while junior Ashley Wilkes
had 10 points on 4-for-4 shooting. Junior Jen
Morabito went 3-for-4 from behind the arc as Canisius shot 56.3 percent
(9-for-16) on 3-pointers. Freshman Brooke
Angelos had a career-high six assists in 23 minutes.
"I
felt our defensive intensity and attention to detail weren't what they needed
to be," Canisius coach Terry Zeh said. "That resulted in Fairfield getting a lot of open looks, and to their
credit, Fairfield knocked down those shots."
Canisius
forced Fairfield into six turnovers in the opening seven minutes of the game
but could only score three points of those turnovers. The Griffs took a 12-9
lead on a 3-pointer from freshman Kayla
Hoohuli off a baseline pass from Lennox. Canisius extended the lead to
22-16 after 3-pointers from Morabito and Ruttle. Fairfield came back with 15
straight points, making six consecutive field goals and holding Canisius
scoreless for six and a half minutes, to take a 31-22 lead after a layup from
Katie Cizynski. The Griffs scored the final five points of the half - the third
3-pointer of the half from Ruttle and two free throws from junior Ashley Durham - to trail by four at the
break.
Fairfield
(20-7, 13-3 MAAC) built a 10-point lead, going up 40-30, after 3-pointers from
Brittany MacFarlane on back-to-back possessions in the opening three minutes of
the second half. The Griffs trailed 55-43 with 6:36 left, and five points from
Lennox - a 3-pointer and two free throws - cut the Fairfield lead to seven.
Canisius wouldn't get closer the rest of the way as Fairfield limited Canisius
to three points in the final four-plus minutes.
MacFarlane
and Taryn Johnson led Fairfield with 12 points apiece. Katelyn Linney had nine points
while Desiree Pina had nine points, six assists and five rebounds.
Canisius
returns to the court on Friday, when the Golden Griffins host Manhattan College
in the Koessler Athletic Center. Tipoff for the annual Pink Zone (Play4Kay)
game is set for 7 p.m.
Notes: Fairfield
has defeated Canisius in six consecutive meetings and for the fourth straight
year in the KAC... The Canisius frontcourt combined for 37 of the team's 51
points on the day... Angelos had six assists in MAAC play entering Sunday's game,
doubling her total with the six assists against Fairfield... Canisius had 16
assists on 18 made baskets... Canisius allowed a 50 percent field goal percentage
in two straight games for the first time Dec. 8, 2000, against Siena (55.2 percent) and Dec. 10, 2000, against Marist (52.5 percent)... Morabito now has 60 3-pointers on the
season, the seventh player in program history with 60 or more 3-pointers in a
season... Hoohuli made her 50th 3-pointer of the season and is the
fourth freshman in program history with 50 or more 3-pointers.
