The Fairleigh Dickinson University women's basketball team defeated St. Francis College, 61-52, Wednesday, Jan. 10 in Brooklyn Heights, NY. Freshman guard Jordan Sykes (Avalon, NJ/Holy Spirit) (Avalon, NJ) took over down the stretch scoring 12 of the squad's final 14 points, en route a career-high of 24 points ? 15 coming in the second-half ? in addition to hauling down five boards and dishing out five dimes.
Junior forward Jennifer Walkling (Westminster, MD/Westminster) (Westminster, MD) collected her sixth double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds, while freshman forward Christy Altamirano (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) (Bayonne, NJ) chipped-in 11 points.
Junior guard Shanay Freeman (Laurelton, NY/Towsend Harris) (Laurelton, NY) scored FDU's first basket, a double-clutch lay-in on the right block. Walkling notched an old-fashioned three-point play with 16:18 remaining, shifting the Knights ahead, 7-4.
Sykes came off a screen to pop a jumper inside the arc. She then knocked down a trey on the left wing following an inbounds pass, punctuating a 7-0 run and giving Fairleigh Dickinson a 10-point advantage, 16-6.
St. Francis guard Kara Ayers (Galloway, NJ) poured in ten-consecutive points for the Terriers, who battled back to a 24-18 deficit with 7:31 left. Walkling answered with a six-straight points of her own, to maintain a two-possession lead.
Sykes utilized a ball-fake before connected from the left elbow at the 3:51 mark, for a 28-22 margin. Ayers then popped a pair of three-balls, bringing the contest to a one-point game in favor of the Knights, 29-28.
FDU held a 31-30 advantage at halftime, paced by 11 points, five boards and four steals by Walkling and nine points from Sykes. Ayers tallied with 18 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field. The Terriers also held a 21-13 lead on the glass after 20 minutes.
The Knights opened the second stanza with a 9-0 surge, on the strength of four field goals on their initial four possessions. Altamirano swished a spot-up in the lane, followed by a left-handed lay-up by Walkling in transition. Freeman nailed a shot from downtown and Altamirano hit the offensive boards for a put-back.
“Tonight was a total team win ? we didn't have a lot of numbers, but we gutted it out,” Head Coach Sandy Gordon said. “Having three people with double-digit scoring figures is huge.”
St. Francis guard Tiffany Hill (Orange, NJ) banged a three-pointer to end a 5:01 drought from the floor, but Sykes hit a pull-up from long-range to counter. Senior forward Mercedez Walker (Stratford, CT/Bunnell) (Stratford, CT) banked-in a deuce with 12:33 remaining and FDU stayed up 45-39.
Freeman hit from the right baseline at the 9:12 mark for a 47-43 lead. The Terriers drew within one before Sykes stepped up on back-to-back trips down the court. She crossed up her defender and connected on a deep two, then drained a trifecta with 5:16 left, extending the Knights' lead, 52-46.
Sykes hit the offensive boards for a driving lay-in ? her seventh-straight point ? maintaining the advantage, 54-48, at the 3:39 mark. She iced the victory with five points at the charity stripe.
“We have been stressing making foul shots down the stretch and tonight we did,” said Gordon.
Ayers led St. Francis with a team-high 21 points, while Hill posted a double-double of 15 points and 10 boards.
The Knights host Robert Morris University at 4:00 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 13 at the Rothman Center.
