Merrimack Pulls Out 60-58 Win at AIC
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The American International College
women's basketball team dropped a 60-58 decision to visiting
Merrimack Saturday afternoon at Butova Gymnasium. The Warriors, who
have now won five of their last six contests, improved to 9-14 on
the season and 5-12 in the Northeast-10, while the Yellow Jackets
fell to 11-9 overall and 8-8 in conference play. Senior center
Mirlande Francois (Miami, Fla.) registered a
double-double with 12 points and a game-high 10 rebounds for AIC.
Junior guard Amanda Shannon (North Andover, Mass.) led all scorers with 30 points, including each of Merrimack's last seven points in the game and made the game-winning layup with just five seconds left in the contest.
The Warriors held an eight points lead with 8:17 to go in the second half after a pair of made free throws from senior forward Kara Borelli (Westbrook, Maine) and the Yellow Jackets went on an 11-0 run to take a 56-53 lead after a put back from Francois.
Sophomore guard Casey Miller (Fairbanks, Alaska) also scored in double figures for Merrimack with 10 points and senior guard Takeya Faison (Lynn, Mass.) added nine points with five boards.
Junior forward Stacy Boisvert (Agawam, Mass.) led AIC with 16 points and grabbed eight rebounds and senior forward Alexis Castro (Chula Vista, Calif.) netted 13 points with eight boards. Graduate student Alissa Rubino (Port Jefferson, N.Y.) scored six points with four rebounds and a game-high seven assists.
The Yellow Jackets trailed 33-26 at halftime after shooting just 29.7 percent (11-37) from the field and finished the game at 37.7 percent (23-61) after a 12 for 24 performance in the second half. AIC outscored the Warriors 28-16 in the paint, but Merrimack held the advantage in points off turnovers, 18-9.
The Yellow Jackets return to action Thursday when they travel to
Dominican for a 7 p.m. non-conference contest.