NEW HAVEN, Conn. (Nov. 9, 2024) – Powered by the game-winning basket at the buzzer by sophomore Amani Abuhatab (West Haven, Conn./West Haven), the Mercy University women's basketball team opened its 2024-25 regular season with a 67-65 win over Saint Anselm on Saturday afternoon at James Moore Fieldhouse.
The Mavericks (1-0) win their season opener for the third straight season and defeat the Hawks (0-1) for the second straight year.
Mercy was led by senior Jaclyn Stanavich (Amsterdam, N.Y./Amsterdam) who had a game-high 21 points on 9-of-17 shooting with five rebounds. Sophomore Molly Boek (Saugerties, N.Y./Saugerties) had a career-high 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting and junior Angelina Barrera (Gloucester City, N.J./Gloucester Catholic) had 14 points. Abuhatab netted 11 points on 5-of-9 shooting with a team-high seven rebounds and freshman Caitlin Leary (Carle Place, N.Y./Carle Place) had three points and five rebounds in her collegiate debut. Sophomore Grace Lesko (Northampton, Pa./Northampton Area) added two points and four rebounds in her collegiate debut.
Saint Anselm was led by Melanie Hoyt and Tatum Forbes who both had a team-high 17 points.
A Stanavich three and Abuhatab layup gave Mercy an early 5-0 lead. The Hawks scored the next seven points to take a 7-5 lead with 7:08 left in the quarter. A Stanavich jumper tied the game at 7-7 before five straight Saint Anselm points gave the Hawks a 12-7 lead at the 3:55 mark. Saint Anselm later held a 16-13 lead before a Boek layup made it 16-15. A late Anna Nelson layup gave the Hawks an 18-15 lead after the first quarter.
Mercy opened the second quarter on an 11-0 run to take a 26-18 lead after a Boek layup with 6:07 left in the half. Saint Anselm responded with a 14-5 run to take a 32-31 lead with 2:11 on the clock. Barrera followed with a three-point play to give Mercy a 34-32 lead before four straight points by the Hawks gave Saint Anselm a 36-34 lead. Four consecutive points by Stanavich to end the half gave Mercy a 38-36 lead at halftime.
A Boek layup to open the second half gave Mercy a 40-36 lead. The Hawks later cut Mercy's lead to one, 44-43, before the Mavericks went on a 6-2 spurt to take a 50-45 lead after a Boek free throw. Saint Anselm made it a one-point game, 52-51, with 1:54 on the clock before an Abuhatab three gave Mercy a 55-51 lead after three quarters.
The Hawks opened the fourth quarter on an 8-0 run to take a 59-55 lead with 7:47 left. Barrera scored the next six points to give Mercy a 61-59 lead with 3:39 remaining in regulation. Back-to-back layups by Hoyt gave Saint Anselm a 63-61 lead with 1:48 on the clock. After a Mercy timeout, Barrera connected on a layup to tie the game at 63-63 with 1:30 left. Stanavich later gave the Mavericks a 65-63 lead following a jumper with 35 seconds left. Following a Saint Anselm timeout, both teams turned the ball over, giving the Hawks possession with 19 seconds left. After another Hawks timeout, Marta Pons Gomez scored the tying basket with six seconds left. That was just enough time for Abuhatab who received a pass from sophomore Paige Fourtin (Ansonia, Conn./Greens Farms Academy) at midcourt and drove to the right side of the court and scored on a jumper as time expired to give Mercy the 67-65 win.
Mercy shot 48.3 percent (28-of-58) from the floor, 40.0 percent (4-of-10) from downtown and 70.0 percent (7-of-10) from the foul line. Saint Anselm shot 44.4 percent (28-of-63) from the field, 21.1 percent (4-of-19) from beyond the arc and 71.4 percent (5-of-7) from the charity stripe. Mercy held a 30-29 edge on the glass.
Head Coach Scott Lagas and the Mavericks resume action tomorrow when they play at Southern Connecticut State at 3:30 p.m.
