SMITHFIELD, RI–Bryant topped visiting NJIT 73-64, in America East Conference women's basketball action inside the Chace Athletic Center Thursday evening.
Bryant, paced by Mariona Planes Fortuny game-best 25 points, improves to 10-9 overall, 3-3 on the America East while the Highlanders who were led by a team-best 18 points from Alejandra Zuniga, dropped to 8-11 overall and 0-6 in the America East.
In addition to Planes Fortuny's game-best 25 points, Kemari Reynolds combined for a double-double (14pts, 12reb) followed by Martina Boba and Nia Scott, each scoring 11 points.
Planes Fortuny finished 8-for-12 from the field, grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out six assists.
Zuniga, who led NJIT with 18 points, followed by Trinity Williams 12 points on 5-of-5 shooting from the field, Kenna Squier adding 10 points, finishing 4-for-7 from the field and Kiana Brereton chipped in nine points off the bench in 15 minutes of action. Brereton went 3-for-5 from the field and 3-of-4 from the free throw line.
Freshman Madilyn Dogs pulled down a team-best eight rebounds and Lyzi Litwinko filled up the box score with six points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals for the Highlanders.
Bryant outscored NJIT in the opening 10 minutes, 23-12, but the Highlanders rallied back in the second quarter, using an 8-2 spurt to cut the Bryant deficit to single digits, eight, 28-20, at the 7:07 mark. The Bulldogs would use a 14-7 run, including a 9-3 spurt in the final four minutes for a 45-27 lead at the half.
After 20 minutes, Mariona Planes Fortuny led all scorers with 15 points of 5-of-8 shooting from the field and 3-of-4 from three-point range. NJIT's Trinity Williams netted eight points on a perfect 3-of-3 shooting from the field.
NJIT came out on fire to start the third quarter, outscoring the Bulldogs, 14-6 (12-2 over 2:50), behind six points from Zuniga at the 4:50 mark, slimming Bryant's lead to 10, 51-41. On the next possession, NJIT cut the Bryant lead to single digits, 52-43, on a pair of free throws by Lyzi Litwinko but the Bulldogs extended its lead 15, 58-43 behind an 8-0 run with less than three to play. Zuniga converted a layup with the clock winding down to bring the Highlanders to within 13, 60-47.
The Highlanders took control of the fourth quarter, using a 9-1 run to cut the Bulldogs lead to five, 61-56, resulting in a Bryant timeout at the 6:05 mark. Squier scored seven of NJIT's nine points in the stretch. Bryant responded, scoring 11 in a row to push its lead back up to double-figures, 16, 72-56, at the 2:32 mark. NJIT scored the final seven points of the game in the last forty-five seconds as the Bulldogs secured the 73-64 victory over the visiting Highlanders.
Next Up
NJIT will return back to Newark and play a pair of games inside the Joel and Diane Bloom Wellness and Events Center. NJIT will host UMBC on Saturday at 3pm and Binghamton on February 1 at 7pm.
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