University of New Hampshire Athletics
University of New Hampshire
8-3
Manhattan College
1-10
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Hampshire | 16 | 42 | 58 |
| Manhattan | 29 | 25 | 54 |
Gaston's Career-High Leads Women's Basketball Over Manhattan, 58-54
12/28/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
RIVERDALE, N.Y. -- Senior guard Ariel Gaston (Toledo, Ohio) poured in a career-high 18 points as the University of New Hampshire women's basketball team hung on to defeat Manhattan College, 58-54, Sunday afternoon at Draddy Gymnasium.
New Hampshire wins its third consecutive decision and improves to 8-3 in the non-conference tilt. Manhattan drops its ninth-straight game and slips to 1-10.
Gaston tallied 8 of 10 baskets from the field and recorded eight rebounds, three assists and three steals. Sophomore guard Kristen Anderson (Greene, Maine) posted 13 points and dished out a season-high six assists. Junior guard Elizabeth Belanger (Acton, Mass.) eclipsed double figures in scoring for the team-leading eighth time this season, notching 11 points. Senior forward Kaylee Kilpatrick (Saint John, New Brunswick) turned in six points and eight rebounds.
The Wildcats finished the game shooting .439 (23 of 49) from the floor. UNH also won the battle on the glass, 35-34, and held Manhattan to just a .345 percentage (19 of 55) from the floor.
The Jaspers were led by freshman guard Nyasha Irizarry with 13 points. Sophomore guard Maeve Parahus and junior forward Shayna Ericksen pitched in 11 points apiece off the bench. Junior forward Kylla Champagne led the Jaspers on the glass with eight rebounds.
Manhattan jumped out to a 5-3 lead out of the chute. Irizarry added to the Jaspers' lead as she slashed through the UNH defense and notched a layup while fouled. She completed the three-point play with a free throw to put the home team up 8-3 with 15:16 left to play in the first half.
New Hampshire mustered a 6-2 run as senior guard/forward Sarah-Marie Frankenberger (Gross Gerau, Germany) drilled a pair of jumpers sandwiched by a Gaston layup to inch the 'Cats within a point. However, the Jaspers pulled away again, engineering a 9-4 run to lead 19-13 with 7:16 to go in the opening frame.
Anderson cut the Manhattan lead in half with the lone UNH 3-pointer in the frame. Despite that, the Jaspers closed out the first stanza with 10 unanswered points to lead 29-16 into halftime.
Hindered to just a .257 field goal percentage in the first half, New Hampshire turned it around in the second half and logged a .727 clip.
UNH started the second stanza scoring as Kilpatrick tallied a layup. Gaston followed up with a layup of her own to bring the deficit down to single digits at 29-20. However, the Jaspers managed to bring their advantage to double figures again at 38-27, powered by a flurry of baskets from Ericksen.
The Wildcats retaliated with 13 consecutive points as freshman guard Aliza Simpson (Londonderry, N.H.), Anderson, Belanger and Gaston all pitched in points. The visiting team surge gave UNH its first lead of the match at 40-38 with 7:33 left to play.
Manhattan momentarily regained the lead with a Parahus trey. On the next possession, Anderson converted a 3-pointer from the right wing to give the 'Cats the lead again at 43-41 with 6:59 left on the clock.
Manhattan managed to tie the game for the fourth time in the match as a layup from senior forward Ashley Stec fell at 6:20, but Anderson connected from long range again to carve out a 46-43 lead in the final five minutes of play.
After an Irizarry layup for the Jaspers, UNH turned to Gaston in the waning moments of play to preserve its small lead.
Gaston tallied a layup to increase New Hampshire's lead to three points again at 48-45. Following a made free throw by Manhattan, the senior guard responded by drawing the foul and making both free throws to make it 50-46 in favor of the Wildcats. She capped off the scoring flurry with a steal and made layup on the fastbreak as New Hampshire led 54-46 with 1:00 left in regulation.
The Jaspers would not fade away quietly as the home team constructed an 8-2 run to make it a one-score game at 56-54 with 23 seconds left on the clock. However, a 2-for-2 trip to the charity stripe for Frankenberger sealed the deal for New Hampshire, giving the visitors the 58-54 win.
UNH returns home to close out non-conference play against Bryant University on Wednesday, Dec. 31 (3 p.m.). For tickets, visit UNHWildcats.com/tickets or call (603) 862-4000.
Tune into UNHWildcats.com or follow the Wildcats via social media on Facebook (www.facebook.com/UNHWildcats), Twitter (@UNHWildcats), YouTube (www.youtube.com/UNHAthletics) and Instagram (@UNHWildcats) for the latest news and information on all 20 varsity sports. For additional information on the UNH women's basketball team, follow the 'Cats on Twitter (@UNHHoops) and Instagram (@unhwbb).
