WASHINGTON, D.C. - Graduate guard Kelly Guarino tied a career-best with 24 points for NJIT on Friday afternoon, but it was not enough in a 77-57 loss at Howard University (2-0). Guarino shot 6-for-13 from the field, 5-for-10 from three-point range and 7-for-7 from the free-throw line in an impressive effort.

Guarino last scored 24 points at North Florida on February 17, 2018.

Senior Tatianna Torres also ended up in double-figures for the Highlanders by posting 14 points. Howard was led by sophomore Jayla Thornton with 16 points while sophomore Kelsie Jacobs finished with 11.

The all-time series between Howard and NJIT is now tied, 3-3.

The Highlanders (0-2) and Bison (2-0) both struggled to get consistency on offense in the first quarter. NJIT shot just 2-for-11 from the field, while Howard shot just 3-for-20 from the field. Guarino and sophomore Ellyn Stoll both led the team with three points in the first quarter. Howard's Thornton led the Bison with three points.

There was not much improvement offensively from both programs, but they certainly played close to the vest. Howard took a 26-22 lead into halftime, finishing 7-for-34 shooting in the first half. NJIT finished the half shooting just 5-for-23. The lone spotlight for the Highlanders was Guarino, who finished the first half with 13 points. She made all of her shots from the field from three-point range.  She also finished 4-for-4 from the free-throw line.

The Highlanders fell victim to a strong run by the Bison to begin the third quarter. Howard led by as many as 12 points with 2:52 remaining in the period. Junior Sarah Edmond and Star Fitzgerald-Greer had nine points each leading the charge. With the lead at 43-32 for the Bison, NJIT went on a 10-5 run to finish the quarter strong, taking just a 48-42 deficit into the final quarter.

Howard began the fourth quarter similarly as they did in the third quarter. This time the Bison would not look back. The home team took a 15-5 run into the media timeout with 5:06 remaining in the game and stretched its lead to 63-47.  Edmond (16) and Fitzgerald-Greer (12) each had double-digit point totals in the game to this point.

The Highlanders road trip continues on Sunday afternoon as they will play at West Virginia University at 2:00 pm.


Write-up courtesy of Michael Ventola