ALBANY, N.Y. (February 14, 2022) – The Franklin Pierce University women's basketball team took the court at Nolan Gymnasium for a Northeast-10 Conference matchup on Monday night, against the College of Saint Rose Golden Knights. The Ravens were led by senior guard Lisa Sulejmani (Burlington, Vt.) with 20 points and trimmed a 15-point fourth-quarter deficit down to just three, but ultimately suffered a nail-biting, 84-77 loss.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to an even 10-10 (6-8 NE10), while Saint Rose brought its record to 4-15 (3-12 NE10).

The Golden Knights jumped out to an early 8-2 lead, with half of the points on the run coming from the hands of sophomore forward Neava Rene. A pair of threes from Sulejmani brought the score close for the Ravens in the middle of quarter, but a last-second shot from junior guard Becca Townes gave Saint Rose a 20-16 lead after one.

The second frame started much better for the Ravens, highlighted by a steal and finish from senior Rylee Skinner (Leominster, Mass.) in the tightly-contested start to the quarter. Senior forward Emma Carter (Bristol, Vt.) recorded seven points in the quarter with a triple and a quartet of free throws, as Franklin Pierce looked to close the deficit. Townes drained another shot in the closing moments, this time as the buzzer rang, to send the Golden Knights to the locker room holding onto a 42-31 lead.

At the break Townes led all players with 15 points, while she, Carter and Skinner all finished with four first-half rebounds.

The third quarter brought much of the same at the start of the period, with Saint Rose dominating on the offensive end. The attack came primarily from sophomore guard Isabel Sanchez, with seven quick points. The Ravens started to find the bottom of the basket towards the end of the quarter. Skinner and Sulejmani each hit a pair of field goals in the quarter, but the Golden Knights outscored the Ravens 21-17 and took a 63-48 lead into the fourth quarter.

Trailing by 15 points, Franklin Pierce started the final quarter of play strong, first with a trip to the line by Skinner, and then an impressive finish by sophomore Anna Badosa Soler (Girona, Spain), who helped the Ravens outscore and outrebound the Golden Knights in the early stages of the quarter. The comeback attempt gathered steam through the midpoint of the period, as Franklin Pierce closed the gap to four points (68-64). Saint Rose was not to be denied though, as a 6-0 run quickly pushed the lead back to double digits. The Ravens got as close as three (80-77) on a Sulejmani jumper with 23 seconds to play, but Saint Rose went 4-for-4 from the free-throw line in the waning moments to finish things off.

Franklin Pierce shot 26-for-67 (38.8%) from the field and converted 6 of 17 chances (35.3%) from three-point range. Soler finished with 11 points, five rebounds, and four steals, while Skinner was a rebound short of a double-double with 14 points and nine boards.

Townes led all players with 27 points on 9-for-16 shooting. Fifth-year forward Nina Fedullo recorded a double-double for the Golden Knights with 11 points and 10 rebounds in just under 29 minutes of action. Saint Rose finished 28-for-57 (49.1%) from the floor.

Next up for the Ravens is the final road game of the regular season, against NE10 opponent and intrastate rival Saint Anselm College on Wednesday, Feb. 16. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium in Manchester, N.H.