CALDWELL, N.J. - The Caldwell College women's basketball team lost to Dominican College, 74-63 in a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference contest Wednesday evening in the George R. Newman Center. The defeat drops the Cougars to 11-7 overall and evens their conference record at 5-5. The Lady Chargers, who lead the CACC North Division, are now 15-4 overall, 9-1 CACC.
Dominican led by as many as seven points early before a 6-0 run by Caldwell put the host Cougars ahead, 18-17 with 9:18 left in the first half. The Lady Chargers regained the lead with five straight points, then maintained the upper hand for the rest of the half. A pair of free throws by Caldwell freshman guard Abena George (Elmont, NY/Elmont Memorial) just before halftime made the score 34-29 Dominican at the break.
The Cougars opened the second half with a three-pointer by freshman guard Stephanie Cadet (Elmont, NY/Elmont Memorial) and two more free throws from George to tie the game at 34-34 with 18:20 remaining. But Dominican answered with a 9-0 spree, including five points from Adele Laskowski, that put the Lady Chargers ahead 43-34 with 14:44 on the clock. Caldwell was able to pull to within three points twice, including 53-50 after a basket by senior guard Dana Leary (Bridgewater, NJ/Immaculata) at the eight-minute mark. But Dominican held off the Cougars each time, eventually building a 13-point lead. The win extends Dominican's winning streak over the Cougars to eight games.
Leary finished with 13 points to pace Caldwell, with Cadet scoring 12 points and George tallying 10 points and three steals. Junior forward Mackenzie Lynch (Wayne, NJ/DePaul Catholic) grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds. Dominican was led by Althea Chambers, who recorded 25 points, six boards, five steals and four assists. Dana Rotio finished with 13 points, five assists and five steals, as the Lady Chargers forced 26 Caldwell turnovers.
The Cougars host Felician College in another CACC North battle on Saturday, Feb. 2. Game time is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. in the Newman Center.
