PLEASANTVILLE, NY – The Pace University women's basketball team gave the top-ranked Bentley Falcons all they could handle in the first half before Bentley pulled away in the second frame as the Setters fell 60-45 in a Northeast-10 Conference contest.
Pace (4-16, 3-11 NE-10) was led by junior Shanice Maynard (Camden, NJ/Woodrow Wilson / Coppin State) (Camden, NJ/Woodrow Wilson) who had 10 points and eight rebounds. Fellow Junior Jeane Drury (Flanders, NJ/Morris Catholic) (Flanders, NJ/Morris Catholic) and sophomore Yuni Sher (Poughkeepsie, NY/Long Island Lutheran) (Poughkeepsie, NY/Long Island Lutheran) had eight points each with Sher pulling in a team-high nine rebounds.
The Setters gave the Falcons a battle in the first half as Bentley, who has been the #1 team in the WBCA Division II national poll each week this season, never held more than a nine point lead. After a free throw by Christiana Bakolas made it 24-16 Falcons with 7:21 remaining, the Setters closed the half on an 11-4 run. Freshman Shanice Allen (Riverhead, NY/Riverhead) (Riverhead, NY/Riverhead) sandwiched a three-pointer and a jumper around a free throw from fellow freshman Kirsten Dodge (Fabius, NY/Fabius-Pompey) (Fabius, NY/Fabius-Pompey) to cut the lead to 24-22 at the 5:05 mark. With Bentley leading 28-24 in the waning seconds of the half, a three-pointer by freshman Loren Kaiser (Phillipsburg, NJ/Stewartsville) was blocked, but Drury picked up the loose ball and drained a trey of her own that just beat the first half buzzer to make it 28-27 heading into the locker room.
An upset was not in the cards, as the Setters started the second half cold from the floor, enabling the Falcons to pull away.
Overall in the game, the defensive effort turned in by Pace was possibly the best that Bentley (20-0, 15-0) faced all season. The previous low point total for the Falcons this season was 71 and the Setters held Bentley 21 points under their average. Additionally, the 33.9% that the Falcons shot from the floor was their lowest shooting total of the season.
Pace returns to the court next Saturday, February 8 when they host American International at 1:30 pm. It is Play4Kay day where the Setters will be wearing pink as they support the fight against breast cancer. Play4Kay T-shirts will be sold for $5 at the front gate with the proceeds benefitting the Kay Yow Foundation.
