The following announcement was submitted by the Pace University Department of Athletics. To learn how to post your news on Patch, click here.
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass.- Brittany Shields (Cold Spring, NY/Haldane) netted a season-high 25 points as the Setters outlasted the Warriors of Merrimack College in a back and forth Northeast-10 Conference clash 71-61. Pace improves to 10-8 overall and 8-6 in the NE-10, while the Warriors fall to 11-7 and 7-7 in conference play.
The Warriors jumped out to an 11-4 lead in the first five minutes of play but the Setters answered with the next seven points to pull even at 11. The teams traded leads over the next four minutes as Merrimack extended out to a 28-22 lead with 5:03 left in the half. Pace closed to within a point at 30-29 with 2:44 remaining in the half on a pair of free throws by Shields. Merrimack connected on a pair of triples in the final two minute as the Setters trailed 38-32 at the break.
Merrimack extended their halftime lead to 44-36 with 16:45 left in the game. The Setters rallied with a 13-2 run to take a 49-46 lead with 12:39 remaining in the game. Shields tied the game on a lay-up and gave Pace the lead with a three-point play. The Warriors retook a one-point lead at 50-49 but the Setters answered with a 15-5 run to pull ahead 64-55 with 4:55 to play in the game.Allison Cleary (New Windsor, NY/Cornwall Central) connected on a three-pointer and added a fast-break lay-up to key the run.
The Warriors closed to within five points at 64-59 with 4:11 on the clock but the Setters converted 7-of-10 at the line in the final three minutes to secure the win. Cleary went 3-of-4 at the line in the final stretch of the game to keep the Warriors at bay.
For Pace, Shields led all scorers with a season-high 25 points along with four rebounds. Cleary finished with 15 points, six rebounds and four assists, while Jessica Scannell (Cork, Ireland/St. Vincent's) tallied 11 points and five assists. Margo Hackett (Pawling, NY/Pawling) added four assists, four boards and three steals.
The Setters return home to face NE-10 foe Stonehill College on Saturday, February 2 at the Goldstein Fitness Center at 1:30 pm
