SMITHFIELD, RI–The NJIT women's basketball team fell at Bryant, 71-66, despite a game-best 21 points from junior Alejandra Zuniga Saturday afternoon in America East Conference women's basketball action inside the Chace Athletic Center.
NJIT moves to 7-15 overall, 4-5 in the America East while Bryant improves to 12-10 overall, 5-4 in the America East.
In addition to Zuniga's game-best 21 points, Trinity Williams finished with 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the field followed by Olivia Kulyk 11 points on 4-of-9 shooting from the field. Audrey Kormann came off the bench and chipped in eight points while Enya Maguire added six points.
Maguire led all players with seven rebounds and dished out three assists. Williams and Kulyk each pulled down five rebounds each.
A tight back and forth start to the first quarter saw the Bulldogs score seven straight for its biggest lead of the quarter, 14-9, at the 4:14 mark. An 8-2 spurt by NJIT gave the Highlanders a one-point lead, 17-16, with less than three to play. Both teams traded baskets over the final two minutes and were tied at 21 after the first 10 minutes.
NJIT edged Bryant in the second quarter, 14-13, and used a 9-5 run to close out the first half, capped by a three-pointer by Enya Maguire to give NJIT a one-point lead, 35-34 advantage.
Eight of the 10 NJIT players scored at least two points and grabbed one rebound in the opening 20 minutes paced Olivia Kulyk with seven points while as a team the Highlanders shot 63.6 percent from three-point range (7-for-11).
NJIT scored the first five points of the third quarter on a layup by Olivia Kulyk and a three-pointer by Alejandra Zuniga for a six-point lead, 40-34, resulting in a Bryant timeout. The Highlanders extended its lead to six, 44-38, after a tough layup down low by Trinity Williams at the 5:30 mark. In the last five minutes, Bryant went on an 8-3 run to knot the game at 48-all heading into the fourth quarter.
Bryant opened the fourth stanza scoring six straight to take a 54-48 lead, at the 7:12 mark. The Highlanders rallied its way back into the game after a putback layup by Audrey Kormann and connected on the and-one to slim the Bulldog lead to two, 62-60, at the 3:26 mark. On the next possession down the floor, Zuniga sank a pair of free throws to tie the game at 62-all with three minutes left in the game.
The Bulldogs used a 7-2 spurt over the next two minutes to push its advantage to five, 69-64, with less than thirty seconds to go in the contest. Zuniga scored the final Highlander points of the game on a layup with nine seconds remaining but it wasn't enough as Bryant sank two free throws and held on for a 71-66 victory.
Bryant had three double-figure scorers paced by Mia Mancini's 20 points off the bench on 6-of-11 shooting from the field and 8-of-10 from the free throw line. Breezie Williams combined for 16 points and Maranda Nyborg added 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field.
Next Up
NJIT will return back to Newark for a pair of games inside the Joel and Diane Bloom Wellness and Events Center on February 6 at 6pm vs. New Hampshire (Play4Kay) and February 8 vs. New Hampshire at 6pm (Amber Morgan Memorial Game/Alumnae Day).
Stay Connected
Stay up to date during the NJIT Women's Basketball season by following @NJITWBB on Twitter and Instagram and liking the NJIT Women's Basketball page on Facebook.
