Riverdale, NY - The College of Mount Saint Vincent's women's basketball team entered the Sharp Center on Tuesday night up for the challenge, as they went toe-to-toe with Manhattanville College, the Skyline's first-ranked club. Despite an impressive first half, the final two quarters saw struggles on both ends of the floor, resulting in a 14 point loss.
The Dolphins came out firing on all cylinders, clearly using the momentum of playing the conference's top team in its favor. CMSV jumped out to an early 6-0 lead, thanks in large part to forcing the Valiants to turn the ball over three times in the first two possessions.
On the other end of the floor, it was Shania Wolfe-White who shined offensively for Maria Nardulli. The sophomore guard scored eight total points in the first quarter, making four of her five shot attempts. While the team as a whole shot just 36% from the floor, their defense, which included nine turnovers, kept the Dolphins on top.
Manhattanville eventually showed the crowd why they're undefeated against the conference, but CMSV went step for step with them. The Dolphins carried their energy over from the first quarter into the second. The ball movement was evident, as three or more Dolphins gained control of the ball in each of their scoring possessions.
The Valiants eventually tied things up at the 6:48 mark, making it the first time the Dolphins lost the lead since tip-off. An Amber Been jumper regained the lead for CMSV, but a strong finish by Manhattanville resulted in the visitors leading by three at halftime.
From the first whistle of the third quarter until the final buzzer, it was all Manhattanville. The Dolphins were outscored by the Valiants 22-6 in the third, pushing the tide into the visitor's favor. Been regained her scoring touch in the fourth, scoring nine of her 16 points in the final frame. But her push came a bit too late for a Dolphins team that shot just 36% from the floor in the second half with six turnovers. While CMSV never game up, Manhattanville proved to be too much to overcome.
The Dolphins ultimately fell by the score of 61-47.
Despite the loss, there were positives throughout the roster. First and foremost was Wolfe-White, who had a career game with 17 points shooting 53% from the field. Been tied Wolfe-White with a team-high 17 points to go along with five rebounds, four steals, two assists and a block.
Melanieann Broderick ended her night with five boards of her own while Kira Villegas added four steals.
The Dolphins, now 0-6 against the Skyline, will look to regroup and get back on track against Old Westbury on January 5.
