OLD WESTBURY, NY – Sophomore
Courtney Heesemann (New Hyde Park, NY) scored a career high 24 points, as the College of Mount Saint Vincent Women's Basketball team evened its Skyline Conference
record with a 71-54 win at Old Westbury on Tuesday night.
Edeana Martinez (Bronx, NY) also turned in a strong game with 12 points and seven rebounds.
The Panthers jumped out to an early lead on Tuesday, as they held a four point edge with 13:05 to play in the opening period. The Dolphins took the lead for good, at 14-12, with 10:07 remaining in the half on a three-pointer from freshman Kerry O'Connor (Bethpage, NY).
The Mount would open its largest lead of the opening period when Heesemann converted a lay-up to put the Dolphins up 31-17 with 2:36 remaining in the half. Following the first 20:00, the Mount would hold a 33-23 lead.
For the half, the Dolphins shot 12-33 from the field, including 2-7 from behind the three-point line. The Dolphins outscored the Panthers 18-10 in the paint in the frame and converted 11 points off of 14 Old Westbury turnovers. Heesemann scored 15 of her 24 in the opening 20:00.
The Mount would hold a double-digit lead throughout the second half, opening its biggest lead of the game at 69-49 with just over 2:00 to play in the contest on another lay-up from Heesemann. The Dolphins would shoot 41-percent from the floor in the half and forced 12 turnovers. The Mount held the Panthers to 29-percent shooting in the period.
Karissa Koerner (Bay Shore, NY) and Kaitlin Burud (Red Hook, NY) each scored nine points in the contest, while Lauren Percodani (Staten Island, NY) and Koerner led the team in assists with three apiece. Burud equaled the team-high in rebounds with eight. The Dolphins finished the night with 12 steals, led by four from Martinez.
The Mount shot 28-68 (.412) from the floor on the night and outscored Old Westbury 38-22 in the paint. The Dolphins converted 20 points off of Panther turnovers and held the advantage in bench points at 14-2.
The win moves the Mount to 3-2 overall on the season and to 1-1 in Skyline Conference play. The Dolphins will be back on the court on Thursday night at Polytechnic. Tip-off with the Fighting Blue Jays is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
