HACKENSACK, N.J. – FDU Women's Basketball kicked off their 2024-25 season with an exhibition matchup against the Bloomsburg Huskies Friday night. The Knights emerged victorious in the bout by a score of 59-51.
FDU was led by a statement performance from freshman
Ava Renninger in her debut as a Knight and college athlete. Renninger dropped 20 points to lead the way for FDU, in addition to securing eight rebounds, while shooting an efficient 57% from the field. The highly touted Yardley, PA native figures to play a significant role as a freshman for head coach
Stephanie Gaitley.
The Knights also saw a terrific performance from graduate student
Abaigeal Babore, who stuffed the stat sheet. Babore recorded 13 points, seven rebounds, and six assists for the Knights, on a 50% shooting clip. Babore is one of the five returning starters from last season for Coach Gaitley; the veteran leader will look to use the moment from her strong exhibition performance to carry into regular season play.
Several of the Knights other returners saw solid performances on the court. Sophomore
Staci Williams led the Knights with two makes from outside the arc, and tallied eight points, an assist and a steal in 20 minutes of game action.
Teneisia Brown was also a force in the paint early for the Knights, tallying nine points and five rebounds in 25 minutes of play.
Coach Gaitley tested a variety of rotations in the exhibition matchup, spreading minutes out across the roster. Each of the 15 active Knights on the roster made an appearance in the exhibition match.
Bloomsburg proved a pesky opponent for FDU, clawing their way back into the game with a fourth quarter that saw them out-score FDU 19-10. However, strong second and third quarter performances from FDU gave the Knights a comfortable cushion to work with. The Knights also sealed away the late threat from Bloomsburg on a big three-point play converted by Renninger with 20 seconds left in regulation.
The Knights will now turn their attention to their upcoming regular season opener on Monday, November. 4
th. FDU will host the visiting Dominican Chargers at the Bogota Savings Bank Center, as the NEC title favorites kick off their quest to run it back.
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Segovia Steakhouse is the presenting sponsor of the 2024-25 FDU Women's Basketball season.
