Box Score OAKDALE, N.Y. (Feb. 20, 2016) - Thanks to an outstanding performance off the bench from junior guard Aliyah McDonald (Hempstead, N.Y.), as well as great play from both Ally Leftridge (Melville, N.Y.) and Alexia O'Connor (Centerport, N.Y.), the Molloy women's basketball team defeated Dowling in a 67-64 contest this afternoon at Dowling Gymnasium. The Lions improve to 10-10 overall, 9-9 ECC. The Golden Lions fall to 2-22 on the season, 2-16 in East Coast Conference play.
Molloy started out the contest falling behind by eight within the first quarter, and trailed through the the second quarter until McDonald knocked down a jumper to tie the contest at 26-all with 3:10 left to play. Leftridge and freshman Ihnacinse Grady (Amityville, N.Y.) both added jumpers to make the score 30-28 at the end of the second quarter.
Unlike the cold spell that the maroon and white opened the game with, Molloy started the third period off with a six-point run making the contest 36-30 with 8:01 to play. Back-to-back points by Krstina Surlan (Novi Grad, Bosnia) helped put points on the board for Dowling. A three-pointer by senior guard Alex Hampton (Baldwin, N.Y.) helped to kick off another rally by the maroon and white, along with jumpers from Leftridge and O'Connor as Molloy opened up a 45-40 lead. Dowling brought the score within three points to end the frame. The Lions were up by ten with the score of 59-49 with 4:56 to play until the white and blue continued to add points to the board. A three-pointer by Kaelan Ward (East Hampton, N.Y.), and jumpers added by Kayla Hill (Massapequa, N.Y.), Kamille Ejerta (Jamaica, N.Y.) and Surlan put the Golden Lions down by three points with 1:45 to go in the contest. Hampton knocked down a pair of free throws with less than 30 seconds to play in getting Molloy up by a 65-62 score. Hill answered with a jumper, but Leftridge sank two clutch free throws with 10 seconds to play. Dowling had a chance to knot the score at 67-all as the buzzer sounded, but Hill's three-point attempt was off the mark to end regulation.
Molloy finished the game shooting 45.8% from the floor, while Dowling 49.1% from the field. McDonald topped the scoresheet with 19 points followed by Leftridge and O'Connor, who had 17 and 10 respectively. Surlan and Hill had 20 points apiece for Dowling in the losing effort, the Golden Lions' 16th straight defeat..
The Molloy Lions will host Daemen College at Quealy Gymnasium on Friday (Feb. 26) at 5 p.m. If you cannot make Friday's game, be sure to check out our YouTube channel for a live audio and video broadcast. Be sure to follow Molloy College Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for all the latest up-to-date information about your favorite Lions programs.
