Box Score ALBANY, N.Y. – Antonia Smith (Bronx, N.Y. / Dwight School) scored a game-high 18 points to power Saint Peter's women's basketball past Rider 62-54 in the first round of the 2015 MAAC Tournament on Thursday.
The senior converted on 8-of-10 from the charity stripe and also tallied four rebounds and four assists. Sajanna Bethea (Levittown, Pa. / Pennsbury) posted her sixth double-double of the season, scoring 12 points and pulling down 12 rebounds. Alyssa Velles (Franklin, Conn. / Norwich Free Academy) recorded 11 points in the victory.
Julia Duggan paced Rider (11-20) with 15 points and 16 rebounds. Emily Fazzini finished with 15 points while Marritta Gillcrease tallied 11 points in the losing effort.
After a back-and-forth first half, the Peacocks (5-25) pulled away in the second half to advance to the MAAC Tournament Quarterfinals for the first time since the 2011-12 season.
Knotted at 31 with 16:11 left in the second half, the Peacocks went on a 20-9 run over the course of 10 minutes to take a 51-40 lead. The run was powered by Smith and Velles, who combined for 12 of the 20 points.
Rider trimmed the deficit with back-to-back baskets at 5:39 and 4:34. Following a pair of free throws to give the Peacocks a 53-44 lead, the Broncs scored five unanswered to get within four with 2:36 left to play.
Saint Peter's stopped the run with three consecutive free throws to extend its lead. After a pair of charity tosses from Duggan, the Peacocks hit their free throws down the stretch to hang on to the victory.
Saint Peter's opened up the first half with a 11-3 run, capped off by a triple from Velles at 14:06. She scored five points total in the run. The Broncs countered with five unanswered points to cut into the deficit.
Following the media timeout at 11:58, the Peacocks scored six straight points to take a 17-8 advantage with 10:22 on the clock. Rider cut into the margin with a three straight points from Gillcrease.
Saint Peter's took a 21-14 lead at the 5:13 mark with a 7-3 run. Rider would outscore the Peacocks 10-4 in the final moments to cut the margin and trail 25-24 leading into half.
The win snaps a three-game losing streak in MAAC Tournament games played at the Times Union Center. It also is the first time Saint Peter's has defeated Rider in postseason action since the 2010-11 season. The win also marks the second straight season that a No. 10-seed will advance to the quarterfinal round.
Saint Peter's will take on No. 2-seeded Marist tomorrow in the quarterfinal matchup. The two teams split the season-series, with the Peacocks most recently defeating the Red Foxes 66-58 in Jersey City. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
