WORCESTER, Mass. – The fourth-seeded Holy Cross women's basketball team downed No. 5 Lafayette, 52-33, in the quarterfinal round of the Patriot League Tournament on Monday, March 9 to advance to the conference semifinals for the second consecutive season.
Senior
Lauren Manis finished with a double-double of 19 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Crusaders (19-11). Sophomore
Avery LaBarbera was also in double figures with 11 points, and senior
Megan Swords had eight points.
Alexis Santarelli finished with eight points for the Leopards (15-14), who did not have any players score in double figures. Sarah Agnello hit a pair of 3-pointers to finish with six points, and Natalie Kucowski had 12 boards, four assists and three blocks.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- The Crusaders led 8-4 after a low-scoring first, but were able to extend their lead to 11 points, 17-8, after back-to-back threes from LaBarbera and senior Kathryn Pedi, followed by a layup from sophomore Oluchi Ezemma.
- Lafayette called a timeout with 5:13 to go in the half after that basket, and Santarelli hit a jumper out of the timeout, but Manis responded with a 3-pointer to make it a 12-point game with 3:10 left in the half.
- The Leopards cut within eight, 22-14, after a layup by Santarelli to begin the second half. Swords hit back-to-back baskets to rebuild the lead to 12. Nicole Johnson made it a 10-point game, but LaBarbera had a quick pair of baskets – a jumper and a 3-pointer – to
- Swords gave the Crusaders a 37-20 lead after a layup with 1:10 to go in the third. Holy Cross continued to build its lead going into the fourth quarter, going up 46-23 after a 3-pointer by LaBarbera and a layup by Manis with 6:27 to go. The lead grew as high as 26 for the Crusaders, 52-26, after a fastbreak basket by Manis with 3:49 to go.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:
- With the victory, Ann McInerney recorded her 200th career win as a head coach.
- This marked Holy Cross' first home quarterfinal game since 2015 and the Crusaders' first home quarterfinal win since 2013.
- With 19 wins on the year, the Crusaders have earned their most wins since the 2013-14 season.
- With her rebound with 9:37 to go in the second quarter, Manis became Holy Cross women's basketball's all-time leader in career rebounds. She surpassed Janet Hourihan's total of 1,178 rebounds from 1982-86; Manis now has 1,188 career rebounds.
- Manis has also matched her season total of 344 rebounds from a year ago – tied for the second-most rebounds in program history.
- Manis' double-double was her 20th of the year, matching her total from last season
- Lafayette's 33 points marked the lowest total by a Holy Cross opponent this season.
UP NEXT:
- Holy Cross advances to face top-seeded Bucknell on Thursday, March 12 in a Patriot League semifinal matchup.
- Tipoff in Lewisburg, Pa. is set for 6 p.m.
