URI women's hoops hand Fordham Rams sixth loss

01/22/09 - The University of Rhode Island women's basketball team edged out Fordham University Tuesday night, 49-46, handing Fordham its sixth straight loss. Rhody improved to 8-10 overall with just its third home victory of the season."I thought we played an opponent who allowed us to stay in the game just as much as we were allowing them to stay in the game," head coach Tom Garrick said. "It was a mistake-filled game. Too many turnovers and too many missed opportunities."

The victory marked Rhody's first conference win thus far as the Rams improved to 1-2 in the A-10.

"It's always good to get the monkey off your back," Garrick said. "We've played two of the better teams in our conference but I thought today we took a step forward."

After Rhode Island won the opening tip and came up empty on its first possession, Fordham's sophomore guard Kristin Bell stepped out of bounds just as she crossed half court. Moments later, Rhody's junior guard Lindsay Harris gave the ball right back when she was called for traveling.

Rhode Island went on to miss its first seven shots, allowing Fordham to jump out to an early 4-0 advantage, highlighted by two-point buckets from junior forward Randall Hurst and senior forward Takita Earl.

URI was able to stay in the game early with its aggressive play, knocking down its first four attempts from the free throw line within the first five minutes of play.

Senior forward Tanja Licina tied the game with Rhode Island's first shot from the floor off a missed shot from senior forward Sierra Cooper. Licina led the way for Rhody, as she reached double figures for the sixth time in her last nine games, recording 16 points.

Garrick feels that Licina is at her best when she stays within her range, rather than trying to do too much.

"As long as we can keep her in her comfort zone she's one of the most effective post players in the A-10," he said.

Fordham had an opportunity to put Rhode Island away and enter into the break with a nice cushion. After Rhode Island grabbed its first lead of the contest at 20-19 with a fast break lay-up from senior guard Crystal Bellinger, Fordham exploded on a 10-0 run. The run was capped off by a lay-up from Hurst, who led the way for Fordham with 18 points and 10 rebounds. It was her second straight double-double.

Rhody's freshman guard Sherrie Sessions nailed a two-point jumper from the right corner to stop the bleeding and to cut Fordham's lead to seven, 29-22. Rhode Island then went on a 6-2 run to cut the deficit down to three, entering the break trailing 31-28.

"I was really happy with our poise," Garrick said. "We haven't really played well at home and morale could have easily slipped away. We were hesitant to put on pressure and get our kids fatigued, but we had to put pressure on them in the last five minutes of the first half just to stay in the game, and it worked well for us."

Rhode Island grabbed its first lead of the second half at 35-33 when sophomore guard Megan Shoniker connected from long range in the left corner. Shoniker filled up the stat sheet, scoring six points, grabbing five rebounds and dishing out six assists.

The two teams continued to battle back and forth, with neither team able to pull away by more than three points. With just under four minutes remaining and URI trailing 45-44, Harris connected on the front end of a one-and-one from the free throw line to tie the game at 45. Just over a minute later, Cooper gave Rhode Island a lead it would not surrender at 47-45 with an easy lay-up.

Fordham's freshman guard Becky Peters, who finished with 14 points, knocked down a free throw line to bring her team within one, before Licina put the game away with a turn-around jumper in the paint with just over a minute remaining in the contest.

The Rams are back in action this Saturday when they travel to Xavier to take on the first place Musketeers. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.