SAINTS USE LATE RALLY TO EDGE SALEM STATE

BOSTON, Mass. – The 16^th ranked Emmanuel College Women's Basketball Team recovered from a 15-point first-half deficit to come back and defeat Salem State University, 72-67, on Thursday night in the Jean Yawkey Center.  With the non-conference win, Emmanuel improves to 7-1 on the season, while Salem drops to 4-5 overall.

The Vikings jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead, hitting their first two shots of the game, including a lay-up by Bridget Dullea (Peabody, Mass.) and a baseline jumper by Sandra Lanier (Groton, Mass.).  Emmanuel responded with a 7-0 run that featured consecutive hoops by Fiona O'Dwyer (Stamford, Conn.) and Kisi Thomas (Boston, Mass.), followed by a three-pointer from Laura Benvenuto (Wyckoff, N.J.), and the Saints led, 7-4.

The momentum quickly swung back to the visitors, as turnovers and poor shot selection began to plague the Saints.  A baseline jumper by Salem State rookie Valerie Smith (Springfield, Mass.) and a drive by junior guard Ashley White (Salem, Mass.) gave the Vikings an 18-11 lead, forcing an Emmanuel timeout at 12:08.  A free throw and a tri-fecta from the right wing by White stretched Salem's lead to 22-11. 

A runner in the middle by Salem junior forward Ginny Fleming (Peabody, Mass.) capped 20-4 run by the Vikings, before a hoop by Emmanuel forward Jennifer Bujnowski (Salem, N.H.) ended the Emmanuel drought and set the score at 24-13.

Salem did not commit a foul for the first twelve and a half minutes of action, while the Saints struggled in their transition defense, committing six fouls in the early going.  A pair of free throws from Dullea put Salem State up 30-17 at the six-minute mark, before an and-one by Bujnowski made it a ten-point game.

Two hoops from sophomore guard Britni Mikulanecz (Portland, Me.) and a put-back by Bujnowski  helped to erase a portion of the deficit and Emmanuel trailed by just six, 32-26, with under five to go in the half.

Three consecutive hoops in the paint by Bujnowski were part of a 15-4 Emmanuel run and made it a two-point game at 34-32 with two minutes remaining in the half.  Two Salem free throws and a fastbreak jumper by Fleming sandwiched an Emmanuel bucket by Sarah Higgins (Groveland, Mass.) and the Vikings took a 38-34 advantage into the locker rooms at halftime.

Bujnowski led all scores at the break with 15 first-half points off 7 for 10 shooting.  Dullea led Salem with 10 points and 4 first-half assists.

The Saints opened the second half with a 7-3 run and a hoop by O'Dwyer gave Emmanuel its first lead of the night at 41-40.  O'Dwyer, who saw limited first-half action due to foul trouble, scored again on the break gave the Saints a three-point edge. A Salem bucket by Lanier and a triple by Rachael Carter (Merrimack, N.H.) swung the lead back to the Vikings with thirteen minutes left to play.

Emmanuel turned up its full-court intensity and a steal in the backcourt, followed by a lay-up from Higgins, knotted the score at 48-all.  A basket inside by Chenae Earle (South Orange, N.J.) gave Emmanuel a four-point lead, 54-50, at the ten-minute mark.  The Vikings quickly tied the game again at 54-all after a hoop by Fleming.

With both teams in the double-bonus and six minutes remaining in the game, it would turn into a free-throw contest down the stretch.  With Emmanuel trailing by one at the five minute mark, Earle found Benvenuto on the break and the Saints took at 62-61 lead, but a free throw by Dullea quickly tied things up again at 62-all.

After a 64-all tie, a jumper from the left wing by Liz Daley (Sharon, Mass.) at the three-minute mark gave the Saints the lead for good and Emmanuel would later go up by as many as six at 70-64.  Lanier buried a trifecta with 1:10 on the clock, but the Vikings would draw no closer.  Earle went two-for-two from the line with under ten seconds left and the hosts hung on for the 72-67 win.

Emmanuel trailed by as many as 15 points in the first half, before fighting back to tie things up in the second half.  The game featured 13 ties and 11 lead changes in the second frame.  The Saints scored 10 points off their fastbreak and 10 second chance points, while the Vikings netted 23 points off Emmanuel turnovers.  The Vikings went to the line 33 times, shooting 69.7% (23-33), while Emmanuel took 27 freebies and shot 55.6% (15-27).

The Saints were led by double-double efforts from both Bujnowski and O'Dwyer. O'Dwyer hit for 19 points and grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds, while Bujnowski also scored 19 points to go along with her 11 boards.  Mikulanecz added 8 points and 4 assists, while Higgins hauled in 11 rebounds in the win.

Carter hit for a game-high 22 points to lead the way for Salem.  Dullea scored 14 and Lanier added 11 points and a team-high 9 rebounds.

The Saints will take this weekend off, but return to action on Tuesday night, December 11^th, when they travel to Beverly, Mass. for a meeting with the Endicott College Gulls at 5:30 PM.  This was Salem's final game of the first semester. The Vikings will host Dominican University after during break in the Salem State Holiday Classic.