Box Score
The Lehman College women's basketball team (18-9 Overall, 10-3 CUNYAC) won for the 10th time in their last 11 tries and advanced to the Con Edison/CUNYAC women's basketball championship game for the third consecutive season as the Lightning defeated the Dolphins of the College of Staten Island (20-6 Overall, 12-1 CUNYAC) by a score of 58-51 Tuesday evening at City College of New York's Nat Holman Gymnasium in New York, New York. The victory sets the stage for a CUNYAC title showdown with the No. 1 seeded Bearcats of Baruch College who earlier in the evening defeated the No. 4 seeded Brooklyn College Bridges by a score of 87-75.
The Lightning, just as they did during the 2007-2008 season, avenged a regular season loss to Staten Island by defeating the Dolphins in the CUNYAC semifinals. A big reason why Lehman was able to accomplish this feat was because of the play of senior forward Whittney Barnes who put forth a phenomenal effort on the evening, posting a double-double with 17 points to go along with 15 rebounds (five offensive boards). The 6'2 standout connected on eight of her 16 shots and was a tremendous force in the paint. Warwick High School product Sally Nnamani also played a big factor in the victory, scoring 10 points and snatching 15 rebounds. Monique Sampson also contributed nine points and 13 boards.
Both teams applied pressure defense, resulting in offensive woes on both sides. For the game, CSI shot just 27.4 percent (20 of 73) while Lehman shot 31.4 percent (22 of 70). A deciding factor was Lehman's ability to go inside, both for points and rebounds. For the game, the Lightning out-rebounded the Dolphins 70-43, including an incredible 23-12 advantage on the offensive glass.
Lehman scored the game's first basket of the game 1:04 into the contest on a layup by Sampson. Junior guard Kelsey Ash would make two free throws as Lehman increased its lead to 4-0. Melanie D'Ambrosi of CSI would hit a three-pointer to cut the lead to 4-3 at the 17:38 mark. The game continued to remain close, though CSI could never break through and take the lead. Lehman led by ten points with just 1:16 to play in the first half but the Dolphins put got a three-pointer from Allie Shanahan and a layup by Danielle McLaughlin to set the score at 25-20 as the team's headed into the locker room at halftime.
In the second half, Megan Sullivan got CSI back even by scoring the first five points of the half to knot the score at 25 all. Lehman called time out to break the momentum, but the stage was set for a close game. Lehman would never lose the lead for the remainder of the game, but their lead would not exceed two possessions until the 4:47 mark, when a layup by Barnes put Lehman up by eight at 50-42. The Dolphins would cut the lead to four at 53-49 with 55 seconds to play on a free throw by Sullivan. From there, the Lightning would make their free throws in crunch time, as Tonisha Kirby would convert all four free throw attempts down the stretch to seal the 58-51 win for her team.
Despite the loss for Staten Island, Sullivan scored 17 points, while D'Ambrosi and Nicole Estrada each contributed ten.
The victory for the Lightning means the team is headed back to the championship game for third consecutive season to face a Baruch team that has not lost to a conference opponent during the 2008-2009 season. With a championship and a berth in the NCAA Division III National Tournament at stake, both teams will enter the game with passion and desire as the game should promise to be an instant classic. All Lightning fans interested in going to CCNY for the title tilt should contact the women's basketball offices at (718) 960-7175 for tickets to the event. Game-time on Friday evening will be at 5:30pm.
