NEW YORK, N.Y. (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | In the first meeting in 27 years between the schools, the New Jersey City University women's basketball team played Baruch College close in the second and third quarters, but couldn't counter a 23-12 opening quarter performance by the Bearcats and dropped a lopsided non-conference contest, 88-59, on December 5 at the ARC Arena.
 
In defeat, NJCU (3-5), freshman point guard Tu'ziah Hall (Greenville, N.C./Bannecker (NC)) broke out of a scoring slump and led the Gothic Knights with 16 points (3-8 3 FG), four steals and three assists. It's the sixth time this season Hall was the Gothic Knights' leading scorer.
 
Baruch (3-4, 2-0 CUNYAC) only had eight players see the court and five scored in double figures. Baruch turned 32 Gothic Knight turnovers into a 33-13 margin in points off giveaways and outscored NJCU in the paint, 50-20. Baruch led by as many as 38 en route to its third straight win.
 
In 32 minutes of action, Veronica Ganzi scored a game-high 27 points (9-15 FG), including 7-of 8 from the line and pulled down six rebounds with four assists. Jacqueline Kennedy fell two rebounds short of a double-double performance as the senior center drained 21 points on 9-of-17 shooting from the floor and picked up eight rebounds before becoming one of two Baruch players to foul out.
 
Also for the Bearcats, Shannon Barrett collected a double-double with 12 points, 12 rebounds (11 defensive), and dished out five assists in 35 minutes before also fouling out. Kristen Podlovits provided 12 points, six steals and five assists. Daniela Arias finished with 11 points.
 
In the loss, freshman center Melissa Etienne (Maplewood, N.J./Columbia) fell just short of her first career double-double as she had season highs of nine points and eight rebounds in 21 minutes of action. Senior guard/forward Jazz Randall (Parsippany, N.J./West Orange) and freshman Tiana Hill (Brandywine, Md./Gwynn Park (Md.)) also scored nine points and had three assists apiece; Hill was 3-of-7 from three-point distance.
 
The Bearcats shot better than 50 percent in three of the four quarters and shot 51.7 percent overall (30-58). Their best percentage came in the first quarter at 58.3 percent (7-12). Meanwhile, Baruch held NJCU to 29.4 percent shooting throughout the contest as it led for nearly 38 minutes of the contest.
 
OF NOTE:

• Second meeting. All-time series even, 1-1.
• First meeting since December 28, 1989 in New York, NY. Then-Jersey City State College won that matchup, 65-46.

 
WHAT'S NEXT?:
NJCU concludes its two-game road trip when it takes on Kean University on Wednesday, December 7 at 7 p.m. in New Jersey Athletic Conference action at Harwood Arena in Union, N.J.