HOBOKEN, N.J. (February 3, 2008) – Freshman center/forward Paige Armstrong amassed a team-high 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting to lead the Stevens Institute of Technology women's basketball team past Rochester Institute of Technology, 70-53, on Sunday at the Canavan Arena in Hoboken, N.J. With the decision, the Ducks have now won 11 games in a row, which ties a single-season record that was set during the 2005-06 campaign. They are also 18-3 overall and 13-0 against Empire 8 competition. As for the Tigers, they dropped to 8-10 and 2-8 in conference action.
With 16:26 left before the intermission, senior forward Dora Enright crashed the boards for her second rebound of the contest, which was the 1,000th of her career. She had 14 boards on the afternoon, which now gives her a total of 1,012.
Stevens opened up the game by out-scoring RIT 19-6 over the first nine minutes. During that span, the Ducks tallied the first nine points of the half in a time of 2:24. Enright had four points in the burst off of a pair of lay-ups. Soon after, the Tigers found themselves down 11 points (19-8). They cut the deficit to six with a short 5-0 spurt. Freshman guard/forward Brianna O'Dell (Ballston Lake, N.Y.) started the streak with a three-point play at the 8:33 mark.
Leading 35-29 with just over four minutes remaining, Stevens put together a 7-2 run in 3:11 to grab hold of a 32-22 advantage with 1:23 to go. Freshman forward/guard Victoria Webber sparked the burst with a three-pointer. Enright and senior guard Jean Matusiak followed and capped it off with a lay-up, respectively. The Ducks went into the locker room up 34-26 on a buzzer-beater by Matusiak.
In the second half, Stevens was ahead 40-28 on a jumper by Enright with 18:25 remaining. RIT responded with an 8-4 spurt in a period of 4:53 to come within 44-39 with just over 13 minutes to go in regulation. Sophomore guard Danielle Furman (Coudersport, Pa.) knocked down a pair of trifectas in the run. O'Dell added a three as well at the end.
Later on, the Ducks were leading by seven (59-52) with three minutes to go. Stevens put the game away with an 8-0 streak to take its largest lead of the game at the time (68-52) with 1:32 left. Armstrong put back a lay-up off a missed three-ball by sophomore forward Brittany Fuller. She also scored again with a lay-up on a fast-break opportunity. Junior guard Dani Dudek ended the burst with a converted three-point play.
The Ducks shot 43.3 percent (29-for-67) from the field and 88.9 percent (8-for-9) from the free-throw line. Enright (18 points, 14 rebounds) and Matusiak (11 points, 10 rebounds) both finished the day with double-doubles. Fuller added 10 points and nine boards in 32 minutes of action. Dudek contributed seven points, five rebounds and two steals.
The Tigers shot 30.9 percent (17-of-55) from the floor, 31.6 percent (6-of-19) from downtown and 76.5 percent (13-of-17) from the stripe. O'Dell recorded a game-high 20 points. She also brought down a team-high five rebounds. Senior forward Joanna Dobeck (Victor, N.Y.) accumulated 10 points and a pair of assists.
Today's contest was the final regular-season home game for Stevens. It will return to action next Sunday when the Ducks travel to Oneonta, N.Y. to start up a four-game road trip at Empire 8 opponent Hartwick College. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m.
