Women's Basketball Stymies George Washington, 50-38, in A-10 Opener

Washington, D.C. – The Fordham women's basketball rode a scorching-hot start and typical tough defense to its Atlantic 10 conference-opening win at reigning league champion George Washington, 50-38, on Saturday, the program's first-ever win on the road against the Colonials. With the win, their fifth straight, the Rams improve to 10-5 on the year and 1-0 in conference action, while George Washington falls to 3-11 and 0-1, respectively. "I'm super happy for the kids to start off conference play with a nationally-televised road win and to break an 0-for-12 streak at George Washington," Head Coach Stephanie Gaitley said, "This was a great defensive effort!" The Rams bombed away from behind the arc in the first quarter, hitting seven of their first nine three-point attempts, including the first three in a row to start the game, one by Mary Goulding and two in a row by Lauren Holden, putting the visitors up, 9-2, after 90 seconds. Fordham never trailed in the contest and led, 23-12, after the opening 10 minutes. In the frame, the visitors hit 50.0% of their shots, including 63.6% from behind the arc. The scoring slowed down considerably in the second quarter, with the Rams holding a slim 7-6 advantage. Neither team shot above 30% in the frame. The Fordham defense kept it up to start the second half, limiting the hosts to just four points and one field goal in the third quarter, while jumping out to a 24-point lead by the end of the frame, the team's largest advantage this season. The Colonials fought back in the fourth quarter, however, and outscored Fordham, 16-4, over the final 10 minutes. Bre Cavanaugh and Goulding each tallied a double-double, their fourth and third, respectively, the former notching 12 points and 10 rebounds, plus a pair of steals, and the latter tallying 10 points and 12 boards, matching her season-high, with three assists and a steal. Kendell Heremaia set a new personal-best with six assists, adding five points, three assists, and matched her career-high with three steals. Holden matched her season-high, as well, with 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting, 4-of-7 from deep. Kaitlyn Downey added seven points and five rebounds to round out the starting five, Vilisi Tavui came off the bench late to chip in four rebounds, and Edona Thaqi made her Rams debut in the final minute of action. Fordham was outshot, 34.0% to 30.5%, but took 12 more shots from the field. The Rams hit 10-of-28 from downtown and held the hosts to just 1-of-11 long-range makes (9.1%). Fordham won the battle of the glass, 44-32, including a 13-3 margin on the offensive end. The Rams committed just 10 turnovers for a second straight game, their seventh of the year with 10 or fewer. George Washington's 38 points are the fewest by a Fordham opponent since holding Richmond to the same total on the road last January. During its five-game winning streak, Fordham is holding opponents to an average of 48.0 points per game, with just one foe scoring above 50 – the 62 points scored by Maine in overtime. The Rams return home to host Richmond on Wednesday morning at 11 a.m. during the team's annual Field Trip Day event.