WATERBURY, Conn. – Junior center Amiya Rankins (Somerset, N.J.) saved her best outing of the 2018-19 season for last, scoring 20 points on Saturday afternoon with a career-high five assists and two steals on top of two blocks, as the Concordia College New York women's basketball team ended the campaign with a 63-55 Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) setback at Post University.
NOTES
• Concordia ends the season with a record of 7-21, 5-14 in CACC play.
• Post heads into the conference tournament with a 14-13 record and 10-9 mark in league action.
• Sophomore forward Sabrina Clement (Queens, N.Y.) ends the season with 192 rebounds on a 7.1 per game average, both placing ninth in the program record book.
• Junior guard Nicole Nicholson (Staten Island, N.Y.) ends the season with 69 steals, the fifth-most in program history. Her 2.5 per game average ties for fifth in the program record book with Chanessa Blakemore's rate from the 2010-11 campaign.
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
• Rankins shot 8-11 from the field and added five rebounds.
• Sophomore guard Cameron Corbett (Staten Island, N.Y.) chipped in 15 points.
• Clement tallied six rebounds.
• Freshman guard Sara Hopkins (Mountain Top, Pa.) scored 10 points.
• For Post, Melanie Polanco scored 17 points while Jessica DaGree recorded a double-double behind 19 rebounds and 11 points.
HOW IT HAPPENED
• Trailing early 3-2, Concordia used an 8-0 run off a Rankins layup and back-to-back Corbett triples to take a 10-3 lead with 5:13 left in the opening quarter. Post cut into the separation with a quick 4-0 spurt, but a pair of Rankins baskets with a sophomore forward Jordyn Hornbuckle (Hopkinsville, Ky.) basket in-between extended the lead to 16-7 with 2:43 left in the frame. The host ended the quarter with the final six points to create a 16-13 score.
• Starting the second quarter with a Rankins layup, the Clippers scored the initial six points of the stanza to hold a 22-13 advantage with 6:51 left in the half. Post responded with an 8-0 rally to make it a one-point game at 22-21, but a Clement layup ended the spree and made it 24-21 with 4:24 remaining in the quarter. Rankins responded to a Post layup with a pair of free throws to keep Concordia ahead, but the Eagles ended the half with back-to-back baskets including a three pointer in the final seconds to take a 28-26 lead at halftime.
• Concordia used a sophomore guard Saundra Cleckley (Queens, N.Y.) jumper on the opening possession of the third quarter to even the score at 28-all, with the two sides exchanging baskets before a 6-0 run propelled the Clippers to a 38-35 lead with 4:10 remaining in the quarter. The Eagles held Concordia off the scoreboard for the remaining of the stanza, scoring nine-unanswered points to create a 46-38 score heading into the final quarter.
• The Clippers used a layup from Rankins and triple from Corbett in the opening minute of the fourth quarter to make it a one-possession game at 46-43, but back-to-back baskets from Post extended the deficit to 50-43 with 7:51 remaining in the contest. Concordia reclaimed the lead at 51-50 with 5:42 remaining in the game using a pair of Hopkins three pointers and two free throws from Rankins, with a Post free throw knotting the score at 51-all with 5:09 left to play. Concordia kept the score tied at 53-53 off a Rankins layup, but a three pointer for Post sparked a 7-0 spree that pushed the Eagles ahead 60-53 with 33 seconds left. Corbett ended the spree with a jumper, while three-straight free throws for the host created the final score.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
• The Clippers converted on 21-51 shots, going 5-16 from three-point territory and 8-8 from the free throw line.
• Post finished 21-68 from the field, 6-29 from beyond the arc and 15-23 from the free throw line.
• The Clippers dished out 17 assists versus eight for the host.
• Concordia committed 13 turnovers, resulting in 16 points for the Eagles. Post committed eight turnovers, leading to eight points.
• Post held a 50-28 advantage in rebounds.
• Concordia got 22 points from its bench while Post got 23.
• Concordia recorded three steals with two block while Post stole the ball 10 times with one block.
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