FEBRUARY 21, 2009
KING'S WOMEN DOWN EASTERN, WILL TRAVEL TO MISERICORDIA FOR MONDAY PLAYOFF CONTEST
WILKES-BARRE – Senior guard Kaitlyn Fiorino became just the third player in program history to reach the 1,500-point plateau and freshman Julianna Lynott made her 19th birthday a memorable one as the King's College women's basketball team posted a 64-58 victory over visiting Eastern University Saturday in Scandlon Gymnasium.
With the win, the Lady Monarchs wrapped up the regular-season with a 10-15 overall record and a 8-8 Freedom Conference mark. Eastern ended its season at 7-16 and 2-14.
King's entered the game deadlocked with Misericordia University for fourth place in the Freedom standings. The Lady Monarchs needed a win and a Misericordia loss at Delaware Valley College on Saturday in order for King's to secure the fourth seed and a first-round home playoff game. Misericordia, however, posted a 67-57 win to gain the fourth seed by virtue of a Freedom Conference tiebreaking criteria. King's will now travel to face Misericordia Monday at 7:00 p.m. in Dallas.
The Lady Monarchs led 30-24 at the half but came out on fire in the second stanza with a 11-0 run to build a 41-24 lead. The Lady Monarchs maintained a comfortable lead, holding a 62-48 advantage with 3:41 left.
Fiorino, who entered her final home game with 1,494 career points, surpassed the 1,500-point mark on a three-pointer with 1:40 remaining in the first half. She concluded the game with a team-high 18 points, upping her career mark to 1,512 points, third best all-time at King's. Only Mary Beth Bowler, who netted 2,024 points from 1979-83, and Joanne Polakoski, who followed with 1,971 from 1997-2000, have scored more points than Fiorino.
Lynott (left), meanwhile, celebrated her birthday with a double-double, scoring a career-high 17 points with a team-best 12 rebounds. She made 7-of-10 shots from the floor while chipping in with three steals.
Also aiding the King's attack was Kaitlyn Malshefski with nine points and six rebounds while Brittany Muscatell tallied six points, seven rebounds, and seven assists, upping her rookie assist total to 109.
Bekah Roland led Eastern with 21 points while Lizzie Wilson added 18.
The King's-Misericordia winner will then travel to Center Valley on Wednesday to face top-seeded DeSales University at a time to be announced. DeSales received a first-round bye in the five-team playoff format.
KING'S COLLEGE 64, EASTERN UNIVERSITY 58
EASTERN UNIVERSITY (7-16/2-14 Freedom)
Bekah Roland 8-20 4-5 21; Lizzie Wilson 6-9 3-4 18; Joelle DeCarlo 0-6 6-6 6; Carmen Weaver 3-5 0-0 6; Hannah Tobin 2-9 1-2 5; Shaneen Brown 0-3 2-4 2; Tanisha Starkes 0-3 0-0 0; Mary Poole 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 19-57 16-21 58.
KING'S COLLEGE (10-15/8-8 Freedom)
Eastern University............ 24 34 - 58
King's College.................. 30 34 - 64
3-point goals--Eastern University 4-8 (Lizzie Wilson 3-5; Bekah Roland 1-1; Tanisha Starkes 0-1; Joelle DeCarlo 0-1), King's College 5-22 (Kaitlyn Fiorino 2-10; Kaitlyn Malshefski 1-3; Jessica Paettie 1-4; Kayla Dick 1-3; Andrea Carroll 0-1; Abby Malloy 0-1). Fouled out--Eastern University-Carmen Weaver; Tanisha Starkes, King's College-None. Rebounds--Eastern University 45 (Bekah Roland 12), King's College 50 (Julianna Lynott 12). Assists--Eastern University 11 (Lizzie Wilson 3), King's College 12 (Brittany Muscatell 7). Total fouls--Eastern University 23, King's College 19. Technical fouls--Eastern University-None, King's College-None. A-450
