BRAMANTE POWERS SAINTS TO 64-52 WIN OVER FALCONS

BOSTON, Mass. – Senior captain Vanessa Bramante (Stoneham, Mass.) recorded career-highs of 18 points and six assists to lead Emmanuel College to a 64-52 win over Albertus Magnus College in the Saints' Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) women's basketball opener on Wednesday night in the Jean Yawkey Center.   With the win, Emmanuel improves to 6-9 on the season and 1-0 in GNAC play, while Albertus Magnus drops to 5-9 overall and 0-3 in the conference.

A power move down low from Albertus Magnus' rookie forward Olivia Bolden (South Windsor, Conn.) capped a 9-6 start to open the game for Albertus Magnus, giving the visitors an early lead.  Bramante then stuck a pair of buckets to swing the lead over to Emmanuel, with the Saints up 10-9 following the ten-minute mark.

Bramante's hoops were part of a 16-2 Saints' run, spanning the next four minutes of play, and EC stretched its lead to 22-11, forcing a Falcons' timeout with 6:20 remaining in the half.  The two teams traded hoops coming out of the timeout, with an and-one by Alexis Ezell (Acworth, Ga.) putting Emmanuel up 25-13 nearing the five-minute mark.

The Falcons began to chip away at the Saints' lead, as a post move by Bolden and a basket in transition by Kiarra Epps (Norwalk, Conn.) made it a 27-21 game with1:30 left in the half.  Emmanuel's Sarah Higgins (Groveland, Mass.) hit one of two from the line and Karlee Alves (Ellington, Conn.) sunk a pair to give EC a 30-21 lead with two seconds left.  Following a thirty-second timeout by the Falcons, Kelsey Pendagast (Shelton, Conn.) hit a turn-around in the lane to set the score at 30-23 heading into the locker room.

Bramante led all scorers at the break with her 14 first-half points and six rebounds.  Pendagast led the Falcons with nine points and five boards. Both teams shot poorly in the opening frame with the Saints hitting 11-35 (31.4%) from the floor and the Falcons knocking down 9-31 (29%) field goal attempts.

The Falcons scored twice quickly out of the break, capitalizing on second-shot opportunities and cutting their deficit to 30-27.  A long jumper from the right wing by Higgins pushed the EC lead to 40-35 at the 14-minute mark.

Two minutes later, Emmanuel guard Devin Rauh (Collegeville, Pa.) found Bramante open in the lane and the Saints held a 44-36 edge.  Bramante then dished to Ezell down low to push the Saints' lead back into double-figures with ten minutes remaining.

Sutherland scored on the break for the Falcons and Jennifer Bujnowski (Salem, N.H.) hit one in the paint at the opposite end for the Saints to bring the score to 48-40.  Higgins then powered through the lane and Emmanuel's lead surged back into double-digits at 50-40 with eight and a half left to play.

The Saints' lead stretched to as many as 18 points with 5:16 on the clock and Emmanuel held on for the 64-52 win. Both squads took advantage of their inside game, as not one three-pointer was hit throughout the night.

Bramante netted her 18th point of the night, tying her career-high with seven minutes left to play.  She led a trio of double-figures scorers for Emmanuel with her 18 points coming off of 8-15 shooting.  Bramante dished out six assists, also a career-high for the senior, to go along with her team-high seven rebounds.

Bujnowski finished with 17 points and three boards, while Higgins hit for 14 points, hauled in six rebounds and handed out five helpers in 27 minutes of action.

Bolden led the Falcons with a double-double of 18 points and a game-high 10 boards.  Pendagast chipped in with 12 points and eight rebounds, while Chelsea Sherrod (Bridgeport, Conn.) hit for six points and tallied 11 rebounds.

Both teams return to GNAC action this Saturday, January 17th.  The Saints travel to Norwich University for a men's and women's double-header with the Cadets.  Albertus Magnus will host Lasell College in a 1:00 PM tip.