CATHOLIC CAPTURES 33rd ANNUAL TIP OFF CLASSIC CHAMPIONSHIP; DOWNS WOMEN'S HOOPS 59-58

BOSTON, Mass. – The Catholic University women's basketball team posted a 59-58 victory over Emmanuel College to capture the 33^rd Annual EC Tip Off Classic championship Sunday afternoon at the Andy Yosinoff Court . The Cardinals improve to 3-0 on the year while the loss dips the Saints to 1-1 overall.

Catholic opened the game strong, racing out to a 9-4 lead after a layup by senior forward Melissa Errico (Harrington Park, N.J.) before the Saints rattled off a 7-2 run to tie the game at 11-11. An Emmanuel layup by junior forward Ryan Maynard (Bowie, Md.) gave EC its first lead of the afternoon at 15-13 with 1:55 to play in the first before the squads ended the quarter tied 18-18.

Emmanuel took control early in the second quarter manufacturing a 12-3 run over the first six minutes of action to build a 30-21 lead. During the run, EC received six points from junior guard Alisha Fox (National Park, N.J.) and four points from freshman center Tatijana Ferguson (Boynton Beach, Fla.). The Saints headed into the halftime break leading 34-26 shooting 48.3 percent from the field in the half.

Ferguson and Errico led each team with eight points at the break.

The Cardinals put together a strong third quarter showing, regaining the lead on an Errico layup with under four minutes to play in the stanza to give CU a 42-41 lead. Errico added a free throw and another layup to bump the visitor lead to 45-41 before EC senior forward Jen Chalk (Horseheads, N.Y.) ended the run with a layup to pull Emmanuel to within a bucket at 45-43. Catholic outscored the Saints 23-11 in the quarter and carried a 49-45 cushion into the fourth quarter.

An old fashion three point play from EC senior Alexis Ezell (Acworth, Ga.) cut the deficit to one at 51-50 with 7:22 to play in regulation. After drawing a charge on the defensive end, senior guard Olivia Marks (Canterbury, Conn.) gave the Saints the lead again with a baseline jumper to make it 52-51, Emmanuel.

Catholic junior guard Payton Smith (Spring Lake Heights, N.J.) knocked down a pair of free throws to regain the lead at 53-52 before senior guard Michelle DeSaintis (Trumbull, Conn.) converted a fast break layup to bump the Cardinal lead to 55-52. With 3:15 to play, Emmanuel sophomore Olivia Delphonse (Portland, Maine) hit a layup in traffic to get EC to within a point at 55-54 before Ferguson connected on one of two free throws to tie the score at 55-all with 1:48 to play.

The Saints took a 57-55 lead hitting a runner in the lane by Fox with 1:26 on the clock, immediately calling a timeout to set up a full court press. The Cardinals broke the pressure and Errico drained two free throws to deadlock the game at 57-57. Emmanuel's next possession came up empty putting the ball in Catholic's hands with under a minute to play but a Fox steal gave EC the ball back with under 40 seconds to play. Fox was fouled in transition and hit one of two free throws to give the Saints a 58-57 lead.

DeSantis eluded an Emmanuel double-team to get to the basket for a go-ahead layup with 11 seconds remaining to give Catholic a 59-58 lead. After advancing the ball, EC called a timeout with 4 seconds left on the clock to set up an inbound play under their own hoop. The Cardinals pressure forced EC to call their final timeout and on the ensuing play, the Saints missed a turn-around jumper from 10 feet to give Catholic the EC Tip-Off Classic Championship.

Errico finished the game with 23 points and 13 rebounds while DeSantis ended with 13 points.

Fox paced the Saints with 11 points while Ezell finished with 10. Ferguson posted nine points and nine rebounds.

The Saints return to action on Tuesday, November 22 when they head to Waltham, Mass. for a non-conference contest against Brandeis University at 5:00 PM. Catholic is idle until Sunday, November 27 when they host Coast Guard Academy at 1:00 PM following the Thanksgiving weekend break.

All-Tournament Team:
Carli Patrick – Heidelberg University
Olivia Marks – Emmanuel College
Jen Chalk – Emmanuel College
Michelle DeSantis – Catholic University
Melissa Errico – Catholic University
Tournament MVP:
Melissa Errico – Catholic University