NORTH ANDOVER, MASS. – The FDU Knights (10-4, 2-0) traveled to Massachusetts to take on NEC rival Merrimack (1-12, 0-3) Sunday afternoon.
The first quarter began as a defensive battle mixed with sloppy play on both ends of the floor. Five minutes into the game, at the media timeout, the teams combined for only nine points and seven turnovers. The Knights went on a 6-0 run to force a Warriors timeout, they led 11-4 with 2:15 remaining in the first 10 minutes of play and
Chloe Wilson had seven points. FDU finished the quarter with a 16-8 lead, they forced the Warriors into six turnovers and to shoot only 3-of-17 from the floor.
The next 10 minutes started with a scoring barrage from the Warriors, they opened the quarter on an 8-2 run in the first three minutes. At the second of four media timeouts, the Knights led 26-18, they allowed the Warriors to get within two points before breaking out an 8-2 run Forgues and Fajardo both were pivotal in the eight-point lead. FDU ended the half with three straight buckets from Wilson,
Sierra DeAngelo and
Eniya Scott, they led the Warriors 34-23.
The Burgundy and Blue suffered a blow at halftime when senior guard
Dahomée Forgues was ruled out due to injury. The Warriors opened the second half on a 6-0 run but that was quickly reversed when the Knights ripped off an 8-0 run of their own with scoring from Wilson, DeAngelo, and
Madeline Selvaggi. FDU led 51-38 going into the final frame of play.
In the first five minutes of the final quarter, the Warriors were outscoring FDU 8-3 and cut the game down to a single-digit lead. Despite the dwindling lead, the Knights closed out the game with timely defensive stops and consistent free-throw shooting. They won 62-52.
- Wilson led the Knights with 20 points and four rebounds.
- Senior DeAngelo pitched in 10 points and three steals.
- Freshman Scott scored nine points in 16 minutes on 4-of-5 shooting.
- The Knights have five days off and are not back in action until next weekend when they take on CCSU at Stratis Arena inside the Rothman Center. The game will take place Saturday, January 14 at 1 p.m. Fans can watch the game live on NEC Front Row.
