Berkeley College shows resiliency in holding off Blue Angels for fourth straight win

The Berkeley College of New York women’s basketball team won their fourth consecutive game on Tuesday evening, turning back the Blue Angels of the College of New Rochelle in a Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest by a score of 62-53 at the Wellness Center in New Rochelle, NY. With the win, the Knights improved to 8-2 on the 2013-2014 season, including a 2-0 mark in conference play, while the Blue Angels fell to an overall record of 7-6, including an 0-2 record in HVIAC competition.

Since the game was technically Berkeley College’s home contest, the Knights served as the hosts and wore their home white jerseys, while the Blue Angels donned their dark blue uniforms on their own floor and in front of their own fans.

The College of New Rochelle held a 9-8 lead just 5:11 into the game, but a ferocious 24-0 run over the next 9:26 gave the Knights a commanding 32-9 lead with just 5:23 remaining in the opening session. 11 of those 24 consecutive points scored by Berkeley College were contributed by senior guard Aiyesha Brown. The Blue Angels finished the half strong, however, going on a 10-2 run to close out the session. At the half, the Knights led by 15 points, 34-19.

In the second half, the Blue Angels gradually drew closer to the Knights, eventually pulling to within five points – 51-46 – with 4:37 remaining in the game. Berkeley College bore down from there, though. A 6-0 Knights run – including a pair of baskets by Brown and consecutive free throw conversions by Janay Thomas put Berkeley back up by double digits – 57-46 – with just over two minutes to play. Five straight Blue Angels points pulled New Rochelle to within six points with 54 ticks left, but the Knights hit on five of their six attempts from the charity stripe in the final minute of the game and eventually held on for a nine point victory.

Leading the way for Berkeley College in the victory was Thomas who contributed a team-high 19 points to go along with nine rebounds. She also hit on 11 of her 15 attempts from the free throw line. Milan Germany was a presence all evening long, as despite fouling out, she posted a double-double with 13 points, 14 rebounds, four assists, and three steals. Brown was clutch down the stretch for the Knights, and she finalized her evening with 17 points and seven rebounds.

Despite the loss for the College of New Rochelle, the Blue Angels – who fought valiantly in trying to make up a 23 point first half deficit – were led by Jah-Leah Ellis who netted a game-high 20 points while also posting 13 rebounds and tallying two steals. Alyssa Pechin connected on four three-point baskets in finishing with 12 points, four assists, and three steals, and Jasmine Brandon dropped in 13 points off of the bench.

The Knights dominated the glass, out-rebounding the Blue Angels by a margin of 59-39, including a staggering 30-16 difference on the offensive glass.

Berkeley College will now enjoy three days off before returning to action on Saturday evening, as the Knights will play host to King’s College at the Borough of Manhattan Community College. Start-time for that contest is scheduled for 5:00pm.