The American University women’s basketball team (1-2) defeated the Delaware State Hornets (2-3) by a score of 66-63. The matchup, played in Bender Arena, was the first look at the Eagles under first-year head coach Kelly Killion.
American started the first quarter strong with lots of movement on offense and shooting plenty of three-pointers, with freshman forward Charlotte Tuhy knocking down two. The Hornets, while they were able to get to the rim, made 1 shot in their first 10 attempts of the game.
Sophomore guard Molly Driscoll had 8 points in the quarter, including a steal of an inbound pass that she took coast to coast for a difficult finish at the rim.
Delaware State came out in the second quarter strong, with a 6-0 run to start, with all of those points either scored or assisted by junior guard Mahogany Cottingham. The Eagles’ 2 consecutive turnovers helped fuel this run by the Hornets. They had 6 turnovers in the quarter after only giving up one in the first quarter.
American recaptured the lead with a 6-0 run of their own off the backs of 2 consecutive 3-pointers from Driscoll. Delaware State finished off the half with a 6-0 run, tying the game heading into halftime.
The Hornets dominated the first half with 26 of their 31 points coming at the rim, all while not making a single 3-pointer.
Just like the second quarter, the Hornets started quickly in the third with 2 consecutive steals and layups by Cottingham and a subsequent jumper made by graduate student guard Nykesha Sanders forced Killion to call a timeout.
The Eagles fought back, however. Their movement on offense created more paint touches for the team’s scoring effort. With six minutes remaining in the third, a pass to senior Anna Rescifina on the left block left her smothered by the defense, so she shot the ball over her head without looking at the basket. The circus shot miraculously went in, with a foul called on the make.
At the end of the third, a backdoor cut by freshman guard Kayla Greyvensteyn left her wide open under the basket. Rescifina found her, and the point deficit was cut to 1. This forced a Hornets timeout. The cutting and movement by the Eagles was very prevalent in the third quarter, allowing them to get good shots at the rim.
The fourth quarter started with a layup from Cottingham to give Delaware State a 6-point lead. However, American started to find a groove on offense and went on a 9-2 run capped off by sophomore guard Madisyn Moore-Nicholson’s 3-pointer on the left wing, which erupted the crowd. The Eagles kept this run up and went on a 17-3 run to close out the game.
“We had to come back from a lot last year,” Driscoll said. “We know what it's like to come back, and that’s exactly what we did.”
Driscoll led the Eagles with 18 points on 50 percent shooting. Tuhy led the team in rebounds with 13, as well as 13 points, going 3-5 from the 3-point range. For the Hornets, Cottingham had 18 points along with 3 steals and senior guard Aniyah Jones had 13 points off the bench in only 11 minutes.
This was Killion’s first win as a head coach after years as an assistant for Penn, Sacred Heart and William and Mary. She takes over a program that only had one win in the previous season and matches that total in her first game.
“They competed from start to finish, no doubt,” Killion said of her players. “I'm proud of everything they've done and they’ve earned tonight.”
The Eagles return to Bender on Nov. 25 to face the Yale Bulldogs.
This article was edited by Connor Sturniolo, Penelope Jennings and Walker Whalen. Copy editing done by Sabine Kanter-Huchting, Avery Grossman, Ryan Sieve and Ava Stuzin.
