Neither Rutgers-Camden nor Rutgers-Newark Universities stood a chance when the Lions showed up to play this past week. The women’s basketball team played some of their best games of the season, securing two important wins in each. As the team comes closer to the New Jersey Athletic Conference playoffs, their play has become nothing less than spectacular. With everyone showing up fully to every game, the Lions look like they are unstoppable.
The first game of the week came on Wednesday against Rutgers-Camden and the Lions dominated in a 66-54 victory. From the very beginning of the game, the Lions took the lead and ran with it until the final seconds of the game.
The Lions took 19 of the first 21 points of the game, clearly showing their concentration and dedication to reaching the playoffs.
At the half, the College led the Raptors 32-16 and kept it coming. Junior guard Tiffany DeTulio led her team by scoring eight points (with two three-pointers) in the first 20 minutes of the second half. The Lions’ biggest lead of the game came when they were up 44-18 in the first five minutes of the second half.
DeTulio led the charge with 17 points, while sophomore guards Kelly Coughlin and Kylie O’Donnell each chipped in with nine. Sophomore forward Jessica Goldbach had a team-high seven rebounds. This win put the Lions in third place in the NJAC, tied with Ramapo College (who they had recently suffered a loss to), and 14-7 overall.
Coming off of this big win, the Lions were excited to play again this week, this time on Saturday, Feb. 2 against Rutgers-Newark. In this NJAC game, the Lions dominated 71-51.
After some back and forth play in the first half of the game, the Lions opened up their lead in an 11-2 run, which gave them a 23-12 lead. DeTulio and O’Donnell each had a stellar first half, keeping the Lions’ lead as high as possible.
However, the Scarlet Raiders came out ready to fight back in the second half. Before the Lions knew it, their opponent was closing in and were within only one point of tying it up. Junior guard Kelly Roddy came to the rescue with a three-point field goal from Coughlin.
With 12 minutes left to play, freshman guard Angelica Esposito lifted the lead to a more comfortable 12 points. From then on, the Lions had the game in the bag and came out on top.
DeTulio had another fantastic game, one of the best of her career, with 14 points, nine rebounds and two steals. Esposito also had an impressive 14 points while Liz West had 12. The Lions are now 15-7 overall and 8-6 in the NJAC.
This past weekend, the Lions hosted the 27th annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day, a free clinic for girls to come out and meet the Lions basketball team. They were able to talk with the players and ask questions about college-level sports. All in all, it was a successful and inspirational day for all of these young girls.
This coming week, the Lions will take on Rowan University on Wednesday, Feb. 6 at 6 p.m. and New Jersey City University on Saturday, Feb. 9 at 1 p.m.
