Rowan Women’s Basketball On Top of the NJAC
Everything seems to be going Rowan’s way recently. Despite starting out the season very slowly, Rowan have been able to take control of the season through their conference play. The Profs started their season was a disappointing November in which they went 2-4 (1-1 in conference play). The team didn’t look like a team yet, they hadn’t quite gelled yet. They went undefeated for most of December before losing their mojo at the Naples Shootout in Florida. After a tough conference loss to Montclair State, Rowan got things back under control with two big victories over Kean and Rutgers-Newark. Could Rowan continue their winning streak, or would they go through another rough patch?
Rowan won a huge game over Rutgers-Camden on Wednesday, defeating a tough Scarlet Raptors team 81-62. What a game it was for senior Nicole Byrne! The Brick native could not miss from the three point line, draining 5 three pointers on the way to a career high 20 point performance. Dominique Peters could not be guarded, scoring 16 points on 7-9 shooting. She also added 5 assists and rebounds. Ayanna Johnson hounded the boards, grabbing 15 rebounds.
On defense Rowan executed their game plan perfectly. They did not allow sharpshooting senior Gabby Greene to play her game. They kept her from killing the Profs with three pointers, keeping her from hitting a single three pointer. While standout freshman Wykira Johnson-Kelly had a big 20 point, 13 rebound performance, it was not enough to will her team to victory. With a three game win streak, Rowan looked to extend it to 4 with a big win over NJCU, which they would do in a close 82-75 win over the Gothic Knights. It was a two woman show for the Gothic Knights, with Marajiah Bacon looking unstoppable. She scored an astounding 38 points while grabbing 11 rebounds. Miesha Bacon added 18 points as well.
The Profs were led by Alexis Kriley, who put up 22 points in the victory. Ayanna Johnson was dominant on the glass, grabbing 19 rebounds. Rowan played a much different game on offense, with most of the team contributing. 4 players other than Kriley reached double digits, while NJCU had two starters that didn’t score a single point. It wasn’t a pretty game for Rowan, they shot poorly from the field, (39%) from the three point line (23%) and from the foul line (53%), but they were able to gut out a tough conference victory.
Rowan are on top of the NJAC conference, with a 11-7 record (more importantly 9-2 in the NJAC). The Profs have a huge grudge match on the road against 9-7 (8-2 in the NJAC) TCNJ, who beat Rowan in a 79-70 overtime thriller early in the season. They will then travel to 9-9 (4-7 in the NJAC) Ramapo to close out the week.