MADISON, N.J. – Junior guard
Olivia Aliotta posted 16 points and 16 rebounds while senior forward
Gianna Pica scored 14 points and the Drew University women's basketball team won the Battle of Madison Avenue with a 60-46 victory at cross-town rival FDU-Florham in a non-conference affair Tuesday evening.
After a back-and-forth affair most of the evening, the Rangers (4-2) outscored the Devils 22-10 in the fourth quarter.
Aliotta shot 7-for-14 from the field and also recorded three steals and a pair of blocked shots. Her 16 rebounds were the most by a Ranger since Sekya Campbell C'22 grabbed 19 boards in a 76-71 victory at Catholic University on Feb. 5, 2021.
Junior guard
Amy Rachilla added nine points and four assists while senior guard
Maddie Beyer contributed seven points and five helpers. In addition, junior guard
Miabella Diaz registered six points and 10 rebounds.
Shannon Tighe led the Devils (4-2) with 13 points and 11 rebounds.
The Rangers trailed just once on the evening – when it was 2-0 – and were poised to break away on numerous occasions, only to see the Devils rally. After leading 12-10 at the end of the first quarter, the Rangers outscored FDU 11-2 to start the second period, extending their advantage to 23-12 with 6:24 left in the half. But FDU used an 8-2 spurt to cut the deficit to five (25-20) heading into the break.
The Blue and Green pushed their lead back into double figures twice early in the third quarter, the last time following a layup from Rachilla that made it 32-22 with 6:40 remaining. However, a 9-0 FDU run made it a one-point game with 3:38 remaining in the stanza. A layup from senior center
Brenna Hezel put Drew up 38-33, but Christina Centeno hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer for FDU to trim the deficit to 38-36.
The Devils made it a one-point game again with 9:15 left before Drew used a 12-3 run to open up a gap. Pica kicked off the decisive stretch with a 3-pointer before Diaz nailed a triple of her own with 5:55 to go. Aliotta capped the surge with a jumper, and the Rangers settled any doubt with seven straight points later in the period. Beyer opened the game-clinching run with a 3-pointer and jumper before Pica came up with a steal and layup to put the game on ice at 58-44 with 2:42 left.
Drew returns to play on Sunday, when it hosts Penn State Harrisburg at 2 p.m. in a non-conference outing.
