NEWTON, Mass. – Junior center Angie Martinez (Taunton, Mass.) made Mount Ida basketball history on Tuesday night when she caromed her 872nd career rebound in the opening minutes of the first ten minutes of play.
Head Coach Katie Greene called an immediate full time out so that Martinez could be recognized by the athletic department, coaches, teammates and family and friends.
Martinez totaled 10 rebounds in the non-conference setback to Mount Saint Mary (NY), 61-41, for a career total of 881 in just three years in a Mustang uniform to along with seven points. Martinez became the leading rebounder in men's and women's basketball history with her performance.
Katlyn Jesse (Marshfield, Mass.) led Mount Ida in scoring with eight points and three rebounds while teammates Molly Alkinburg (Port Deposit, Md.), Brittany Crosby (Riverside, R.I.) and Trish Liotta (Hampton Bays, N.Y.) each tallied six points apiece with Crosby also recording seven rebounds.
The Mustangs opened the second game of the doubleheader on a promising 16-2 run in which Liotta opened the scoring for both teams with a three pointer at the 8:39 mark. Kayla Cleare (West Hempstead, N.Y.) got the visitors on the board after a scoreless first two minutes of the game for the Knights.
An Alkinburg jumper from the charity stripe followed by seven straight points for Martinez put Mount Ida out in front at 12-2 before Jesse nailed a jumper to put the Mustangs ahead by twelve points at the 2:50 mark of the opening quarter. Another quick two points from Jesse put the Knights in a big hole early prompting a 30-second time out from Mount Saint Mary.
Jessica Rini (Seaford, N.Y) knocked down a jumper from fifteen feet to bring the Knights back to within nine at the end of one.
After a sluggish opening ten minutes of play, the Knights came out of the quick break on fire while going on a 21-4 run in which they never looked back. Megan Kerutis (Merrimack, N.H.), 14 points, three rebounds, and two assists, opened the frame with back to back free throws before Rini sunk a layup to cut the Mustang lead to 16-11.
Within five, Kerutis once again struck for MSM and inch the Knights closer before both teams would go scoreless for the next two plus minutes. Janae Graham (Orange, Conn.) hit twice from the line while Mustang guard Breanna Muir (Wareham, Mass) knocked down one of two FT's to keep the slim Mount Ida lead at 17-15. Kassidy Hallum (Lake Grove, N.Y.) nailed a three to put the Knights ahead and their first lead of the game at the 4:46 mark, 18-17.
The run in which the Knights held the Mustangs to just four points in the second quarter, ended the half with the MSM on top 28-20.
Much like the second quarter, Mount Saint Mary continued to pour it on offensively as they went on a 19-9 run led by Cleare, Rini, Kerudis and Graham. At the end of thirty minutes of play, the hosts were looking at an 18 points deficit heading into the last ten.
Once again the visitors outscored the Mustangs 14-12 in the fourth quarter en route to the twenty point win for the Knights. Bridget Kelly (Farmington, Conn.) led the way with six points in the frame while Cleare led the way with a game high 22 rebounds to go along with eight points. Elizabeth Limonta (Stewart Manor, N.Y.) tallied six points and equaled that in rebounds as well for MSM.
Both teams shot less than 30% in the first half from the field and shot identical from downtown at 12.5%. Mount Ida shot 63.6% from the line going 7-11 in the game compared to MSM's 52.2%.
The Mustangs are back in action on Saturday when they travel to Saint Joseph College (CT) with a game against the Blue Jays at 1:00. The Knights are back in Skyline Conference action when they are entertained by St. Joseph's College-Brooklyn on Thursday at 7:00 PM.