EASTON, Pa. – Holy Cross women's basketball senior guard
Avery LaBarbera filled the box score with a game-high 22 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists as the Crusaders collected another victory, a 59-50 win at Patriot League opponent Lafayette Thursday night.
LaBarbera dished out a game-high six assists leading the Crusaders (14-7, 8-2 PL). Junior
Addisyn Cross stuffed the stat sheet with four points, five rebounds, five assists, two steals, and one block. Cross also drew a few charges as well. Senior
Oluchi Ezemma reached double figures with 10 points and seven boards while sophomore
Cara McCormack tallied 10 points and four steals in 27 minutes off the bench.
For the Leopards (7-13, 3-7 PL), Naomi Ganpo double-doubled with 12 points and 13 rebounds in the setback.
The victory was the 800th in the history of the program. Holy Cross is 800-528 (.602) across 48 seasons.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- LaBarbera splashed a triple on the left wing to start the scoring for the Crusaders and gained the team their first edge 3-2. LaBarbera regained the margin at 9-8 via an isolation step-back jumper and then Cross drew a charge on the ensuing possession for the guests. The LaBarbera jumper was part of a 9-0 Crusader run which doubled up the Leopards at 16-8 when sophomore Bronagh Power-Cassidy got a steal and McCormack finished at the rim for a deuce. From there the Leopards outscored the Crusaders 9-to-2 to trail by one, 18-17 after one.
- Lafayette took back control of the game at 26-24 when Kylie Favors drilled a trifecta with 5:07 left in the half. Both programs combined to score only four points over the remainder of the half.
- Out of halftime, the Crusaders used a 15-2 burst to take a multiple possession lead at 41-30 thanks to suffocating defense, two McCormack treys from the right corner, and a senior Madison Demski deep connection. From there, Lafayette put home eight straight to make it a one-possession game, 41-38. Holy Cross led 43-40 through three quarters.
- In the fourth, Cross did most of the dirty work for Holy Cross, drawing three fouls, coming away with three rebounds – two offensive and blocking a shot as the Crusaders built up a 51-42 lead. Lafayette kept chipping away with six in a row to trim the deficit to three, 51-48. On the next two Holy Cross possessions, LaBarbera picked up her sixth dime and 21st point of the match increasing the score to 56-48. Ganpo had a hoop and harm and missed the freebie. After review, Holy Cross was awarded possession and the Leopards were forced to foul down the stretch.
OUTSIDE THE BOX:
- McCormack (four) and Power-Cassidy (three) set a new personal best in steals.
- Holy Cross recorded 11 steals, their largest total of the campaign.
- LaBarbera manufactured a double-double for the 13th time this year.
UP NEXT:
- Holy Cross will host Army West Point on Saturday in the Hart Center Arena at noon.
