Box Score

HACKENSACK, N.J. – The Fairleigh Dickinson women's basketball team suffered a hard-fought loss at home to NJIT, 68-64. With the victory, the Highlanders gain their first win and move to 1-2 on the season, while the Knights fall to 1-1 overall.
 
"This team showed great fight to fight back from a 10-point deficit to tie it up late in the second half." Head Coach Pete Cinella said, "NJIT is a nice team and they handled our run by answering with some big shots."
 
Sophomore Valerie Oyakhilome (Lindenhurst, N.Y./Lindenhurst) kicked the game off with two straight three-pointers followed by an Erika Livermore (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth Area) lay-up to start the game on an 8-2 run. The Highlanders would answer with a 10-0 run.
 
Facing a 34-26 deficit at the break after shooting just 29.6% from the field on 8-of-27 shooting, the Knights regrouped and outscored their visitors 38-34 over the final 20 minutes. However, it wasn't enough.
 
Senior point guard Amanda Andrades (Virginia Beach, Va./Princess Anne) scored her team's first seven points of the second half as the Knights chipped away at NJIT's lead. The breakthrough came from freshman guard Rainey Cox (South Boston, Mass./Southfield) who scored her first collegiate points with a lay-up while getting fouled; her free-throw knotted the game up at 46, but it was the closest the hosts would get.
 
The Highlanders got their lead back up to 11 and never relinquished their grasp on the game despite some tense moments.
 
Andrades scored all 13 of her points in the second stanza on 3-of-6 shooting and 6-of-8 from the charity stripe. She added a career-high seven steals and was a constant nuisance to her opponents.
 
Sophomore guard Kiana Brown (Richmond, Va./Hermitage)'s career-high nine rebounds, six on the offensive glass, were part of the team's 40 total, including 18 offensive boards.
 
Reigning NEC Player of the Week Erika Livermore (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth Area), saddled with foul trouble during the middle of the game, tallied 12 points, six rebounds, and a pair of blocks and steals in 30 minutes.
 
NJIT's two Slovakian forwards, Martina Matejcikova and Nicole Maticka, paced their squad with 17 points and 16 points, respectively. Maticka added 11 rebounds, three blocks, and two steals.
 
FDU remains at home when they host Bucknell on Saturday afternoon, Nov. 22, with a 2 p.m. tip. The match can be seen live on NEC Front Row.