Women’s Basketball Fights Back But Falls at Robert Morris, 68-64

(boxscore)

2/22/07 -- After trailing by as many as 21 points, the Long Island women’s basketball team fought back to get within one point, but fell to Robert Morris, 68-64, at the Sewall Center. The Colonials’ Chinata Nesbit finished with 30 points and 18 rebounds, while the Blackbirds’ Valerie Nainima (Suva, Fiji) netted 29 points.

Long Island (21-7, 14-3 Northeast Conference) overcame an 11-point halftime deficit using a 17-7 run to open the second half. The scoring burst was capped off by a bucket by senior Sonya Coleman (Toledo, Ohio), that narrowed the Robert Morris edge to 42-41.

The Colonials (19-7, 13-3) would stretch out their lead again but Long Island kept fighting back, cutting their disadvantage to three points on several occasions. The Blackbirds rallied in the last minute on three-pointers by Nainima and senior Brittani Kozik (Belle Plaine, Iowa) to make the score 67-64. Long Island was forced to foul and Sugiery Monsac hit a free-throw with six seconds left to ice the game.

The Colonials raced out to a 10-0 lead to start the game and led by as many as 21 points in the first half. Nesbit caused the most problems for the Blackbirds, registering a double-double in the first half with 14 points and 12 rebounds. Monsac chipped in 10 first-half points as Robert Morris took a 35-24 halftime lead. A 14-4 run to close out the half got Long Island back in the game, whittling the Colonial lead to 11 points as the teams headed to the locker rooms.

Long Island shot a chilly 7-for-28 from the floor during the half (25 percent), while the Colonials connected on 41 percent of their shots. The Blackbirds turned it around from the field in the second stanza, shooting 56 percent to finish with a 40 percent mark. Robert Morris shot 44 percent for the game.

Nainima was the only Blackbird in double-figures, shooting 8-for-19 from the floor and a perfect 12-for-12 from the free throw line. Senior Sara Oblak (Skofja Loka, Slovenia) grabbed five boards to lead Long Island. Robert Morris held a 44-26 edge on the glass.

The Blackbirds will wrap up the regular season when they travel to Loretto, Pa., to take on Saint Francis (Pa.) on Saturday, Feb. 24 at 3:00 p.m.