University of Massachusets Athletics
University of Massachusetts
Duquesne
Minutewomen Comeback Falls Short At Duquesne, 61-54
February 20, 2008 | Women's Basketball
Feb. 20, 2008
PITTSBURGH, Pa. - Pam Rosanio (Southampton, Pa.) turned in a 22-point, eight-rebound performance and the Minutewomen cut an 11-point deficit down to four with 2:33 left, but couldn't complete the comeback, as UMass (11-15, 3-8 A-10) fell at Duquesne (12-14, 4-7 A-10), 61-54, on Wednesday night at the Palumbo Center. The Dukes led, 50-39, with 8:16 left before UMass went on a 10-3 run, but Duquesne closed the game by outscoring the Minutewomen, 8-5. Sakera Young (Glassboro, N.J.) set a career-high with 12 rebounds and added nine points and six assists, while Kate Mills (Elkton, Md.) added 11 points and three blocks for the Minutewomen. Kristi Little led the Dukes with 13 points and Jade Singleton added 10.
Both teams struggled shooting, with Duquesne holding a slight edge, 36.8% (21-57) to 36.2% (21-58). The Dukes also held a slight advantage on the glass, 39-37.
The Minutewomen came out of the gates strong, taking an early 11-4 lead on a 3-point play by Rosanio at the 15:28 mark of the first half. The Dukes responded with a 14-6 run over a 6:51 span to take the lead, 18-17, with 8:14 left. UMass scored six-straight points to take a 23-17 lead with 5:08 on the clock, but Duquesne held a 13-5 advantage over the final 4:48 of the half to take a 31-28 lead into halftime.
Rosanio poured in 15 points in the first half as the Minutewomen shot 39.3% (11-28) from the field to Duquesne's 37.5% (12-32). Mills added seven points and Young grabbed eight rebounds for UMass in the opening 20 minutes. Singleton led the Dukes with eight first half points.
UMass cut the lead to one, 33-32, at the 16:50 mark of the second half, but Duquesne responded with a 14-5 run that gave it a 10-point lead, 47-37, with 9:42 on the clock. With the Dukes leading, 51-41, with 6:45 left, the Minutewomen went on an 8-2 run that cut the deficit to four, 53-49, with 2:33 left. Little nailed four-straight free throws for Duquesne and a Keri Pryor steal and layup upped the Dukes lead to 59-51 with 20 seconds on the clock. Cerie Mosgrove's (Needham, Mass.) 3-pointer with 10 seconds left got UMass within five, but two more Little free throws iced the game for Duquesne, 61-54.
Rosanio played all 40 minutes for UMass, and in doing so moved past Kathy Coyner (3,729) and Melissa Gurile (3,737) to log more minutes played than any player in UMass history with 3, 749.
The Minutewomen return to action on Saturday when they host Dayton in a 2 p.m. contest at the Mullins Center. It will be "Think Pink" Day and fans are invited to wear pink as UMass does its part to raise breast cancer awareness.
