Marciniak Registers 5th Double-Double Of The Season As Women's Basketball Stifles Spartans, 67-51
Box Score
SPARKILL, N.Y. (Jan. 23, 2013) – The LIU Post women's basketball team dominated the Saint Thomas Aquinas Spartans Wednesday night, holding a lead for the entire 40 minutes of play and finishing with a commanding 67-51 victory.
The win brings the Pioneers' overall record to 12-4 including a 5-3 conference mark, while on the other side the Spartans slip to 8-10 and 4-4 in ECC action.
Alexis Peters (Dorchester, Mass.) sunk the first jumper of the game after just one minute and 23 seconds had passed to give the Pioneers their first lead of the night. The Pioneers never let the Spartans even share in the lead for the rest of the game, staying ahead by at least a point for the remaining 38+ minutes of play. A drained trey by
Ashley Caggiano (Holtsville, N.Y.) with 5:30 remaining in the half gave LIU Post its first double-digit lead at 23-13. The Spartans tried to battle back, cutting the lead down to as low as four points but closed out the half with the Pioneers leading them by six with a score of 30-24. Peters and
Jalicia Connell (Westbury, N.Y.) led the Pioneers offense in the half scoring six points apiece, while
Nicolette Marciniak (Brooklyn, N.Y.) grabbed four of the Pioneers 18 rebounds in the half. The Spartans' Bianca Kowgios led all players in the half with 11 points.
The second half played to be similar to the first, with the Spartans coming within two points of the Pioneers with 13:36 remaining in the half. This was the closest they would come to LIU Post for the remainder of the game. The Pioneers defense stifled the Spartans' offense over the final five minutes of play, not allowing St. Thomas Aquinas to score after the 4:50 mark. Layups by Peters and Marciniak along with four made free-throws by
Samantha Kopp (Franklinville, N.Y.) were the final 10 points of the game to secure the 16-point Pioneer victory with the 67-51 final. Marciniak scored 15 of her 17 points in the second frame, while Peters matched her first half point total of six. Marciniak and Kopp were also the top rebounders in the half, pulling down eight boards each.
Marciniak, Peters, and Caggiano each hit double-digit point totals for the Pioneers scoring 17, 12, and 10, respectively. Finishing with her fifth double-double of the season, Marciniak also racked in a game-high 12 rebounds, with Kopp following close behind with 10. Peters finished the game with four assists and four steals, while Caggiano swatted a career-high two blocks.
The Pioneers dominated the Spartans in almost all statistical categories including points in the paint (28-6), fast break points (6-0), bench points (19-7), second chance points (15-4), rebounds (45-29), assists (12-7), and blocks (4-0).
LIU Post finished the game shooting 42.6% (23-54) from field goal range, including 38.5% (5-13) from beyond the arc and sunk an impressive 16-17 from the line. The Pioneers' defense shut down the Spartan offense, only allowing them to shoot 25.5% (13-51) from the floor, including just 22.2% (4-18) from downtown and 72.4% (21-29) from the charity stripe.
The Pioneers return to action Saturday, Jan. 26 for a 1 p.m. tip-off at the University of Bridgeport.