Rockville Centre, N.Y. – In a back and forth 40-minute battle, the Molloy women's basketball team fell to the No. 5/8 Falcons of Bentley University, 66-57, Wednesday evening on Bob Houlihan Court. The Lions move to 5-4 on the campaign, while the Falcons improve to 8-1.
 
How it Happened

• Junior Rosa Rizzitelli kicked off the opening 2:47 with a 7-0 rally of her own, shooting two-of-three from the field with a pair of three throws.
• Back-to-back three-point baskets in 20 seconds from Bentley forward Maggie Whitmore snapped the rally to bring the Falcons within one, 7-6.
• The squads would trade baskets through the remainder of the opening stanza, but a three-point basket from junior Sophia Yearwood with time expiring sent the game into the second quarter tied at 19.
• The opening five minutes of the second stanza remained tight with the teams matching each other shot for shot, keeping the contest tied at 23.
• Bentley would go on a mini 6-0 rally to give themselves a 29-23 advantage with 3:33 to go in the first half.
• The Falcons would go up by as much as seven in the closing seconds of the first half, but Rizzitelli netted a jumper as the buzzer sounded to bring Molloy within five, 37-32, heading into halftime.
• In the opening two minutes of the third quarter, senior Samantha Muller hit back-to-back jumpers to cut the deficit to one, 39-38.
• Muller would continue to stay hot from the field, nailing a pair of free throws and hitting a three-point shot to bring the contest all square at 44 with 4:16 remaining in the third stanza.
• Both teams would net two field goals apiece to close out the quarter, bringing the contest back where it started, tied at 48 going into the fourth.
• After the Falcons converted a three-point play to take a 52-50 lead 2:21 into the quarter, Muller hit a turnaround jump shot to stay right with the opposition and knot the contest at 52.
• The cardinal and white would take a 54-52 lead following a pair of free throws from junior Colleen McCullagh with 6:09 to play.
• Over the next 4:50 of action, Bentley would go on a 10-0 rally, limiting the Lions to a 0-for-5 stretch to take a 62-54 lead with 1:19 to go.
• Yearwood snapped the run with a three-point field goal to bring the Lions within five, 62-57, with 70 seconds to play.
• The road team would go on to shoot four-of-five from the charity stripe down the stretch and hold Molloy off the scoreboard and go on and secure the victory, 66-57. 

Top Performances

• Rizzitelli led the squad scoring 15 points while totaling four rebounds and four assists.
• Yearwood collected 12 points and secured a team-high six rebounds.
• Muller tallied 11 points, five rebounds, and three assists.
• McCullagh added 10 points and five rebounds.

Up Next
The Lions begin East Coast Conference play Saturday, December 7 with a tilt against Queens College. Tip-off from Flushing is set for 1:00 p.m.