EMMITSBURG, Md. (January 6, 2022) – Thursday evening's women's basketball showdown between Mount St. Mary's and Long Island looked destined for a runaway by the Mountaineers. But after LIU charged back to force a halftime tie, the Mount absorbed the blow and rallied in a strong second half to defeat the Sharks 74-50.
 
Mount St. Mary's improves to 3-7 (1-2 NEC) this season, while LIU fell to 0-11 (0-3 NEC).
 
Offensive sparks came from senior Michaela Harrison, securing a season-high 25 points thanks in large measure to seven three-pointers. Kayla Agentowicz and Kendall Bresee supplied double figures, with Agentowicz scoring 15 and Bresee adding 11 in a double-double effort. Bresee led in rebounding with 10 while Agentowicz dished out a career-high six assists.
 
Harrison now has 232 career treys and is six away from the school's record.
 
Sophomore Isabella Hunt tallied key shots down the stretch, finishing the game with eight points and nine rebounds. Fellow second-year Jessica Tomasetti put together six points and four rebounds after getting the start.
 
"LIU has been playing some solid ball lately." Head Coach Antoine White said postgame. "We knew they were coming in here and they weren't going to give up. They gave us a run in that second quarter, but I'm really proud with how our girls responded. We regrouped and executed pretty well on the offensive side and on defense, we got some key stops."
 
The opening five minutes belonged to the Mount. Harrison's three-point display came early and often as she had three makes by the 6:16 mark. With the score 13-2, LIU called timeout. Agentowicz followed with a layup to extend the lead to 15-2 before the Sharks made a push to close the gap to 22-10 by quarter's end.
 
Two quick buckets by Agentowicz drove the advantage to 16 points to open the second, but then LIU charged their way back. Shyla Sanford began hitting from long range, nailing a trio of treys in a 14-0 run. Free throws by Harrison offered a brief respite before the Sharks rattled off six more for a 30-28 lead. Bresee's second chance jumper with 2:21 remaining forced a 30-30 tie.
 
Hoping to shake off the sloppy end to the half, the Mount turned to the hot hand. Harrison promptly drilled another triple and Agentowicz followed with one of her own. The lead grew throughout the third period, and Hunt's layup inside of a minute put the home team's lead in double digits again.
 
LIU stuck around in the final frame but was unable to make a run to pull within a couple possessions. Hunt led all Mountaineers with six points in a solid group effort in the fourth, as the team shot 7-for-13 from the floor and 7-of-8 from the charity stripe on their way to victory.
 
Mount St. Mary's continues its four-game homestand with a Saturday (Jan. 8) matinee with St. Francis Brooklyn. Game time is 1 p.m. from Knott Arena.