The Fairleigh Dickinson University women's basketball team lost their regular-season opener at Manhattan, 70-61, in Riverdale, NY, Monday, Nov. 13. Forward Christy Altamirano (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) (Bayonne, NJ) paced all scorers with a double-double of 22 points and 11 rebounds in her collegiate debut.
Altamirano started strong, corralling an offensive rebound and converting the put-back at the 13:38 mark to shift FDU (0-1) ahead, 10-5. Two possessions later, the freshman popped a 10-footer via a feed from senior guard Gayle Coats (Richmond, VA/Gertrude) (Richmond, VA), en route to registering 18 points in the first-half.
A 7-0 run by the Jaspers (1-1) opened up a three-point advantage for the home-standing squad, mid-way through the initial 20 minutes.
Junior forward Jennifer Walkling (Westminster, MD/Westminster) (Westminster, MD) rattled off five-straight points in a span of 18 seconds, highlighted by an old-fashioned three-point play, ultimately sparking a 7-0 surge for FDU. Walkling finished the night a double-double of 10 points and 11 rebounds.
Coats ? who had a game-high eight assists ? dropped in a lay-in, then freed up Altamirano on the block with a ball fake, as the Knights took a 27-20 lead at the 3:36 mark.
Freshman guard Jordan Sykes (Avalon, NJ/Holy Spirit) (Avalon, NJ) connected off glass for an underhand lay-up as time expired and Fairleigh Dickinson hit the locker room ahead, 35-28.
"We had some big performances tonight from two freshmen starting their first games," Head Coach Sandy Gordon said of Altamirano and Sykes. "I can't ask for more than they gave us."
Manhattan splashed home six treys to counteract the Knights' 23-14 rebounding advantage in the first-half.
The Jaspers drained four-straight three-balls to open the second-half, leveling the contest at 41-41, as guard Amanda LoCascio (Maspeth, NY) spotted up three times from behind the arc.
Guard Gabrielle Cottrell (Arlington Heights, IL) hit two free throws with 10:57 remaining in the game, giving Manhattan its first lead of the second-half, 47-46, and would expand it to a 52-46 margin one minute later.
Walkling knocked down one-of-two opportunities from the charity stripe? and went 8-for-9 on the evening ? at 8:44, ending a five minute scoring draught.
Forward Caitlin Flood (Blairstown, NJ) scored six-straight points for Manhattan, opening up a 60-51 advantage with 4:41 left.
Cottrell and Flood both netted double-digit point totals with 18 and 14, respectively. The tandem shot 16-for-17 from the line in the final 20 minutes. LoCascio finished with 15 points for the Jaspers ? all three-pointers.
"We just didn't have the same energy in the second-half that we did early on, but we'll learn from this," Gordon said. "Give credit to Manhattan, they went 10-for-20 from three-point range and hit some big shots. Tonight was a game of runs and after their last one, we couldn't answer"
Junior guard Shanay Freeman (Laurelton, NY/Towsend Harris) (Laurelton, NY) chipped in 10 points and six boards.
The Knights take on Central Florida at 7:00 p.m. in Orlando, FL, Friday, Nov. 18.
