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Lady Pioneers Defeat UDC on Senior Day, Clinch 4th Seed

Christian Arnold

The LIU Post women’s basketball team ended the 2011-12 regular season with a 78-60 victory over the University of the District of Columbia Firebirds Saturday afternoon.

Junior forward Nicolette Marciniak led the Pioneers in scoring with 24 points and added nine rebounds and two blocks. Sophomore guard Alexis Peters contributed 15 points along with seven assists, a block and two steals. The Pioneers shot 43.3 percent (29-67) from the field and 35.3 percent (6-17) from three-point range.

The Firebirds’ senior forward Stacey Griffith scored the game’s first points at 19:54 and gave UDC its only lead of the game. Pioneers’ junior center Samantha Kopp hit a jump shot on the Pioneers’ next possession to tie the game up. Peters then hit a layup at 18:16 to give the Pioneers the lead, and they would not look back. With 10:45 left in the first half, freshman guard Chelsea Williams hit a free throw shot to give the Pioneers an 11-point lead over UDC. The Pioneers ended up finishing the half leading 34-30.

The Firebirds’ junior guard Janelle Junior started the half off by nailing a three-point shot and cut the Pioneers’ lead to one point. UDC managed to keep the Pioneers to a single digit lead until the 12:10 mark of the second half. Then Pioneers’ senior guard Felicia Joyner made a layup that started a 12-0 Pioneers’ run, which saw them move to an 18-point lead. They eventually reached their largest lead of the game with 4:40 left when they extended it to a 24-point lead. The final score would end up being 78-60 in favor of the Pioneers.

Prior to the victory, the team honored seniors Felicia Joyner and Catherine Lutz.  The win was also head coach Deirdre Moore’s 70th career win as the Pioneers head coach.

In the three games prior, the Pioneers defeated Molloy and Queens College and fell to Saint Thomas of Aquinas.

The Pioneers finish the season with a 20-8 record and 11-5 record in ECC play. The win on Saturday clinched the team the fourth seed in the upcoming ECC Championships. The Pioneers will host the NYIT Bears at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, February 29th.

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