HOBOKEN, N.J. (February 15, 2009) – Senior point guard Dani Dudek closed out what could be her last game at the Canavan Arena in style Sunday afternoon as she helped to lead the Stevens Institute of Technology women's basketball team past defending Empire 8 Champions Utica College. Dudek was a rebound shy of notching her 26th career double-double as she finished with 15 points, nine boards and five assists in the 62-57 victory. Freshman guard Melissa Collier came up huge for the Ducks in the final five minutes of play having recorded seven points on four free-throws, in addition to her tenacious defense. Stevens improves to 18-5 on the year and 10-4 in Empire 8 play, while the Pioneers fall to 17-6 overall and 11-3 in league action.
Stevens shot 43.6 percent from the floor and out-rebounded the Pioneers, 40-33. The Ducks were also 8-for-10 from the charity stripe. With 7:07 left to go in the game, Stevens trailed by five (50-45) after sophomore forward Jessica Berry (Rome, N.Y.) buried her eighth field-goal of the game. The Ducks were quick to respond as junior forward Brittany Fuller nailed her third three ball of the day off a dish from Dudek. The contest was knotted for the second time with 5:52 remaining after Dudek sunk both her free-throw attempts.
It was what sparked the Ducks to regain the lead, in which Stevens was able to maintain till the very end. Down by four with 3:35 to go, Berry drilled her ninth bucket to make it a one-possession game. However, a Dudek jumper put Stevens back up by four. Berry was able to bring the deficit to three (60-57) after she made one of her two free-throw attempts. But a Collier jumper just outside the paint allowed the Ducks to take a five-point advantage with 22 seconds left. Utica turned the ball over and helped to guarantee Stevens its 10th league victory of the season.
After falling behind to start the game, the Ducks regrouped and posted a 13-0 run to take a 20-11 advantage in the first 12 minutes of play. Utica was able to cut the deficit to five just before intermission, with the help of sophomore guard Devon Croll's (Vernon, N.Y.) 12-point first half.
A total of 14 points came from the Ducks bench in today's victory. Collier and Fuller both finished with 11 points apiece, as Fuller pulled in seven boards and drained three field-goals from behind the arc. Dudek and Fuller each had a pair of blocks as Dudek finished with five assists. Sophomore center Paige Armstrong totaled eight points on four of five shooting and collected seven rebounds. The Ducks received a solid outing out of their freshman forward, Jillian Barrett, who amassed eight points and five boards.
Today was the last regular-season home game of the 2008-09 campaign. It was a special day for Dudek as she was honored as the only senior of the squad. She has recorded some impressive numbers over the years as a Duck. After today's performance Dudek stands at 1,227 points, 802 rebounds and 647 assists. She is the only known Division III player to have accumulated such numbers in ones career.
Stevens will return to action on Friday when the Ducks travel to Elmira, N.Y. to take on Elmira College at 6 p.m. Stevens defeated the Soaring Eagles 72-44 during their first meeting.
