AVE MARIA, Fla. — As if 90 points wasn't enough last week, the Ave Maria Women's Basketball team put up 99 in their 99-58 win against the Florida National Conquistadors Friday night. It is tied for the second most points scored in program history and the most under head Coach Alex Moorehead.
The first half started off a little slow for the Gyrenes. Ave Maria put up just 22 points to Florida National's 11 in the first quarter. Ave Maria ended the frame on an 8-0 run to double up the Conquistadors.
The second quarter also got off to a slow start, with FNU getting back to within four of the Gyrenes in the opening four minutes. Ave Maria closed strong though, scoring the last five points of the half in the final 15 seconds. Lavariah Armstead hit a jumper in the paint for two and then Elena Barnes hit a buzzer beater three off a steal from Katie Ambrose. The back-to-back buckets gave the Gyrenes a 15-point lead headed into the break.
The third quarter was really when the Gyrenes turned on the pressure. Ave Maria scored 32 points in the frame making it the highest scoring quarter this season. The Gyrenes hit 11 of their 19 shots from the field, three of them from downtown. Defensively, Ave Maria held FNU to just 14 points in the third quarter, extending their lead to 33 points.
In the fourth quarter, the chase was on to break the school record. AMU got close to setting a new mark Friday night, but fell just one point shy, scoring 21 in the final frame. The Gyrenes hit 99 off a layup from Amelia Benjamin with 1:06 left on the clock. They took two more shots after that trying to set the record, both shots came up short.
Nevertheless, 99 points is tied for the second most in program history and the most under Moorehead. It is tied with the season opener for the 2019 season, when the Gyrenes beat Trinity 99-42. Over the last two games against Florida National, Ave Maria has scored a combined 189 points while holding the Conquistadors to just 109.
Moorehead said the feelings after the big win were obviously positive. "I think the best part about it is we are sharing the basketball. Eighteen assists, 16 turnovers, you can't be upset about that. Things to clean up but couldn't be prouder of them and their effort."
For the second game in a row, the Gyrenes had 13 different players score points in the game.
"We score by coalition," said Moorehead. "There is no one individual that is always going to have 35 or some odd points which is great and makes it really hard for the defense to focus on person."
Colleen Shanahan led the team with 20 points, a season-high for her. Three other players hit double digits with Ella Thompson scoring a season-high 17 points, Talia Pellegrini hitting a season-high 14 and Armstead with 10.
With the win, Ave Maria improves to 5-2 on the year and sweeps Florida National on the season.
The Gyrenes are on the road Sunday, December 8, for their next game as they take on FGCU in an exhibition. It is the fourth year in a row Ave Maria has traveled west to Fort Myers to take on the Eagles in an exhibition game.
The next game that counts towards the record for the Gyrenes is December 15, against the Saint Francis Cougars. It is the first of seven games at home before the end of the month that feature four teams in the Top 35 of the NAIA.
"We just got win the battle within the battle," said Moorehead looking ahead. "Every opponent, we are focused on that opponent, we are not looking ahead. But who doesn't want to test themselves against the best in the country? So, I think that's what's important. We will see how good we are, but obviously we know the season is not over if we lose a game here or there."
All seven of the games will be streamed live on the Sun Digital Network.
