New Jersey City University Athletics

Box Score BOX SCORE
GAME PROGRAM/NOTES

JERSEY CITY, NJ (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | Sophomore forward ALNISA HERNAIZ (Irvington, NJ/Irvington) notched her second career high of the week, scoring 19 points, and rookie guard LUISA MONTALVO (Bayonne, NJ/Bayonne) contributed 16 points, as New Jersey City University won its second straight women's basketball game, knocking off City College of New York, 62-50, in non-conference action on Saturday afternoon on “Coach Charlie Brown Court” at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center.
 
NJCU (2-5), trailed by seven, 35-28, four minutes in the second half, before taking control of the game with an 18-3 scoring outburst, resulting in a 46-38 margin with 8:21 to go. CCNY (0-9) dropped its 10^th straight with the loss. NJCU leads the all-time series, 12-4, and has won the last four meetings.
 
Hernaiz, whose previous career high was 15 on December 5 in a loss to John Jay, scored 17 of her 19 points in the second half. She shot 8-of-14 overall and grabbed six rebounds. Montalvo scored in double figures for the fifth time this year, making 6-of-12 including two three-pointers in the second half, with four assists in 34 minutes.
 
“Alnisa played such a strong game on both ends of the floor and I truly believe she is stepping up to the challenge of being the post player we need,” said first-year head coach AMY MULLIGAN.  “She came up big on the offensive end in the second half and held their top rebounder off the boards. A key to this game was limiting the second chances towards the end of the game.”
 
Junior forward DELIA CHERNEZ (Union City, NJ/Union City) had another strong performance on the glass, grabbing nine rebounds, including seven offensive boards while freshman guard JADE MEDLEY (Newark, NJ/Hudson Catholic) contributed seven rebounds, seven points and four assists. Junior MAXINE KAMINSKI (Kearny, NJ/Kearny) scored eight first half points and drew a pair of charges in the game.
 
CCNY freshman forward Syreeta Williams (Queens, NY/Francis Lewis) led the Beavers with 16 points (4-10 FG), including 8-of-8 free throw success while senior guard Simone Tharkur (White Plains, NY/White Plains) finished with 14 points (6-10 FG) and five steals. Senior guard Donika Rexhepi (Prishtina, Kosovo/White Plains) had a near double-double with nine points (2-11 FG), nine rebounds (seven defensive), four assists and three steals in a full 40 minutes.
 
“I felt this was a game we fought for,” admitted Mulligan. “We kept our calm and picked up the intensity which was a big factor. This was a great win because of the tenacity shown. I believe this team is starting to understand the trust and work it takes to be successful.”
 
In a game with nine ties and seven lead changes, most of the see-saw action came in the first half, with the seventh tie of the game coming at the intermission when Rexhepi turned a steal into two points and a 24-24 deadlock seconds before the half. NJCU had led 16-10 with 8:07 left in the period on an offensive rebound and layup by Kaminski.
 
After a quick layup by Hernaiz to start the second half, CCNY scored the next nine points to claim a 33-26 lead on a fast break basket by Tharkur and the visitors continued to lead 35-28 after a pair of free throws by Williams with 16:05 to go.

NJCU stormed back, scoring eight straight on baskets by Chernez, Montalvo, Medley and Hernaiz, to regain a one-point lead (36-35). After a CCNY free throw, Williams gave the visitors their final lead on a layup with 11:11 left (38-37).

But NJCU reeled off the next nine points, including seven consecutive from Hernaiz. Her fast break bucket off a Medley pass made it 39-38 and the Knights never trailed again. With 8:52 left, Hernaiz scored again off a feed from Medley and Medley pushed the lead to 46-38 on a transition layup with 8:21 left off a Chernez steal.

CCNY was able to close the deficit to five, 48-43, before junior forward KERRI CASSARELLO (Keansburg, NJ/Keansburg), who had six rebounds, scored in the post and Medley grabbed an offensive rebound and sank a subsequent jumper.  Montalvo buried a three with 4:31 left to extend the advantage to 12, 55-43. NJCU would lead by as many as 14 in the final minute before prevailing by a dozen.

NJCU will be idle until next weekend, when it hosts Vaughn College on Saturday, December 17 at 4 p.m. CCNY travels to the College of New Rochelle on December 13.