Jan. 19, 2008
Box Score
BRONX, NY - The La Salle University Women's Basketball team had five players score in double figures - led by Carlene Hightower and Morgan Robertson who each had 13 points - as the Explorers registered their first Atlantic 10 Conference win of the season with a 68-59 victory over Fordham at Rose Hill Gym Saturday evening.
For Robertson, the 13 points tied her career-high, while Melanie Gibbons and Alyse Hoover each added 12 points and Margaret Elderton chipped in 11. Gibbons grabbed a team-high six rebounds and Meghan Ahl handed out a team-high four assists.
It was a back-and-forth game through the game's first 14 minutes, as there were seven lead changes and the score was tied five times. Fordham scored the game's first points and had its last lead of the game at 13-10 with 9:29 left in the first. Kassie Humphries scored eight of her game-high 21 points in that stretch.
Hoover responded with the first of her two three-point baskets to knot the game at 13-all, and Jamie Walsh - who scored seven - gave La Salle a two-point lead with a jumper and the Explorers would never trailed again.
After the Rams Takita Earl knocked down a short jumper in the lane with just over six minutes left before the break, the game was tied again at 17-all, but the Explorers closed out the frame on a 13-6 run to take control of the contest.
Hoover started the run with another three, then a six-point spurt - capped by a Hightower steal and a fast-break lay-up, the second time she did it in the half - put La Salle up 26-19. They took a seven-point lead into the locker room - 30-23 - and would not let the advantage dip below that number the entire second half.
After the break, the Explorers pushed their lead to 11, but could not break away from the Rams, thanks to Humphries, who responded to La Salle baskets with scores of her own. She tallied the Rams first 10 points of the second, and her last basket of the game with 9:19 left cut the La Salle advantage to nine - again - at 51-42.
Gibbons responded with a three-point play to give La Salle its largest lead of the evening at 12, and with 8:16 left, a Hoover basket made it 12 again at 56-44.
Fordham (0-18, 0-3 A-10) then got production from Megan Mahoney who scored five straight points - and the Rams next 15 - to cut the La Salle advantage to seven with 6:14. Gibbons and Hoover scored on back-to-back lay-ups to push their lead back to 11.
After a Mahoney three-point play, Hightower scored two straight baskets to get the La Salle lead to 12, but Mahoney responded with a lay-up and a three to make it 64-57 with 1:13 to play, but La Salle would seal the game from there.
The 13 points for Hightower moved her into the 13th spot on the school's all-time scoring list - now with 1,218 points - just passing Davineia Payne (2002-06) who ended with 1,214 points. Next on the list is Ellen Malone (1978-82) - 62 points away, and 81 points shy of the top 10.
La Salle (9-9, 1-2 A-10) next travels to #13/13-ranked George Washington to face the Colonials on Wednesday with a 7 PM tip.
