Video Highlights

NEWARK, NJ—Florida Gulf Coast, a dynasty in Atlantic Sun Conference women's basketball, ran its winning streak to 15 games overall and to 39 straight games in A-Sun play with a 53-32 victory over NJIT Saturday afternoon in the Estelle and Zoom Fleisher Athletic Center.
 
Kaneisha Atwater and Stephanie Haas shared game-high scoring honors with 13 points apiece for the victorious Eagles (22-4; 10-0 A-Sun).
 
Whitney Knight, the 2014-15 A-Sun Player of the Year in women's basketball, added 12 points, a team-high 6 rebounds, game-high 4 assists and game-high 3 blocked shots for FGCU.
 
NJIT(4-21; 1-9 A-Sun) which did not have a double-figure scorer, was paced by Alana Dudley's 9 points. Ruta Vetra did not score, but she took game honors in rebounds (7) and led NJIT with 3 assists.
 
Florida Gulf Coast, ranked #20 in the final AP national Top 25 poll of 2014-15, has long dominated its Atlantic Sun foes, posting a 141-13 conference record since 2007, including wins in 68 of 69 conference games since 2012.
 
In a game pitting the A-Sun's undisputed best team with a program tied at the bottom of the standings, the Highlanders held their own in the first quarter, trailing just 14-12 after the opening quarter. In fact, it took two Katie Meador made free throws with 19 seconds left in the quarter for FGCU to lead after the opening 10 minutes.
 
However, NJIT has been prone to extended scoring droughts all season, and that trait reared its head in the second quarter, when the Highlanders squeezed out just 6 points, while the Eagles again scored 14, as they had in the opening quarter. As a consequence, FGCU extended its lead to 28-18 after a half. Neither team scored after Haas made a 3-pointer for Florida Gulf Coast with 3:33 left in the first half.
 
Atwater and Knight each had 8 points for the visitors though the first two quarters, while Ronni Grandison, playing her next-to-last home game for NJIT, led the Highlanders with 4 points.
 
After managing just 6 second-quarter points, the home team revived its offense to score 12 in the third quarter. However, FGCU, which had scored 14 in each of the first two quarters, broke out with 21 in the third quarter to go up 49-30 after 30 minutes.
 
Haas, the Florida Gulf Coast senior, did the most damage for her team, making all three of her shots, including two from downtown in the third quarter.
 
The low-scoring fourth quarter had no bearing on the outcome, as FGCU managed only four points and NJIT scored just two in the final 10 minutes. FGCU shot 2-for-15 from the floor, including 0-for-8 on 3-pointers, while the Highlanders missed all 10 of their shots, three from downtown, in the period, with the only points coming on two foul shots by Kelly Guarino.
 
The Highlanders will play their final home game of the season on Monday at 7 pm, when they host Stetson in Fleisher Athletic Center.
 
It will be Senior Night, with the program honoring Ronni Grandison in pregame ceremonies.
 
After Monday, NJIT will play its last three regular season games on the road.
 
Every team qualifies for the Atlantic Sun Conference championship tournament, which begins on March 4 with the quarterfinal round at the campus sites of the top four seeded teams.
 
The likely matchup for NJIT in the quarterfinals will be FGCU in Fort Myers, FL.