Manhattan Unable To Regain Lead Against Marist in MAAC Battle

Maddie

After a great win against Rider on Feb. 12, the Manhattan College Women’s Basketball team sat at the number six seed in the MAAC rankings. However, they faced a true test against the conference’s number seven seed, Marist College, in a MAAC battle on Thursday night.

Despite gaining a lead of nine points in the first three minutes of the game, the Jaspers lost 66-75 to the Red Foxes. Manhattan dominantly showcased their skills, using momentum from the 71-56 win against Rider a few days before.

However, Marist proved that they were gunning for Manhattan’s spot in the rankings as the second quarter approached. With 6:30 left in the first half, Marist took the lead and did not give it up for the rest of the game.

“To be honest, we were in a bit of a panic when the fourth quarter came around and we were still down double digits,”

Captain Dee Dee Davis said. “That’s never fun. We also just had to stay positive but at the same time, we knew that we had to get going and sorta put points up.”

Despite the devastating loss with four games left in conference play, the Lady J’s continue to hold their heads up high and work toward their goal of lifting the MAAC trophy.

“We just need to stay poised, stay ready, and stay calm,” sophomore Bella Nascimento said. “Ready to compete every day. In practice, we compete. In the games, we compete. That’s all you can ask for.”

Manhattan’s game versus Marist also celebrated breast cancer awareness and the Play4Kay cause that is near and dear to the team’s heart. The Play4Kay game occurs every February and is played in hon- or of Coach Kay Yow who battled breast cancer on and off.

“This game is super important for us,” Nascimento said. “We fight for people who fight for their lives and we just try to give back as much as we can.”

The Jaspers dawned their all-pink uniforms and all proceeds collected at the game are donated to support breast cancer awareness. This year, the Jaspers raised and donated over $1,000.

“Wearing the pink uniform is bigger than us,” senior Brazil Harvey-Carr said. “We do it for the people that unfortunately suffer from breast cancer and I love to show appreciation for this every February.”

In addition to the Jaspers creating awareness about breast cancer and the Play4Kay foundation, Davis earned yet another career accomplishment of her own. After Thursday’s game, Davis is officially the seventh all-time leading scorer in Manhattan College women’s basketball history. While Davis understands the amplitude of her accomplishments, she also credits her biggest supporters with her success-post injuries.

“I don’t know that there are many athletes who have had my kind of history with injuries and being out for such an extensive period of time who have been able to come back and do the things that I was able to do and accomplish things that I was able to accomplish,” Davis said. “I will make no mistake about it, that was only possible because of the amazing women I’ve had around me. My coaching staff and my teammates have continuously put me in positions to be successful and I’m very appreciative of that. They stuck by me and I stuck by them and now look where we are.”

Davis will look to continue her record-breaking career during Manhattan’s next game on Saturday, Feb. 18 at 2 p.m. against Saint Peter’s. The Peacocks are currently on a 25-game losing streak, which includes the recent loss to the Jaspers on Senior Day on Feb. 4.

“We always give the best of our best no matter who we play, so I think that we can’t take anything for granted no matter if it’s their best player or a player that plays only a couple of minutes,” Davis said. “We just have to be locked in from the very beginning and pay attention to the scout.”

If it’s up to the Jaspers, the team will be handing Saint Peter’s its 26th loss in a row. With only two weeks left in the regular season, the Jaspers are looking to prove that they are a threat to any team in the MAAC.