Fourth-Quarter Play by NYU Sinks Tartans at Home

(PITTSBURGH, Pa.) – The Carnegie Mellon University women's basketball team hosted New York University (NYU) on Friday, February 7 in University Athletic Association (UAA) play, falling to the Violets, 69-60, after a fourth-quarter run by the visiting team. The Tartans are now 9-10 overall and 2-6 in the UAA while NYU moves to 15-4, 5-3.

The Violets held a slim 52-50 lead at the end of the third quarter after senior Annie Barrett hit a jumper as the clock was expiring. The Violets then scored the first five points of the final period to extend the lead to seven points before holding off the Tartans through to period and leading by eight with 3:03 to go. Senior Makayla Filiere (Chandler, Ariz. / Hamilton), who led the Tartans with 17 points for the game, scored on a fast break layup after a steal by senior Megan Jaeb (San Jose, Calif. / Presentation) with two minutes to play, cutting the deficit to two possessions.

The Violets then kept the Tartans from scoring, even drawing an offensive foul in the final 30 seconds and went on for the 69-60 win.

Filiere moved into sixth all-time in scoring and now has 1,196 for her career. She also had three steals and three assists in the game. Sophomore Caitlyn Clendenin (Bethesda, Md. / Bethesda Chevy Chase) battled through foul trouble to score 13 points and grab seven rebounds. Senior Katie Higgins (Montclair, N.J. / Montclair) finished with 11 points while senior Laurel Pereira (Naperville, Ill. / Naperville North) scored 10, both finishing 2-of-4 from behind the arc.

There were seven ties and four lead changes in the game with the Tartans largest lead coming with 2:51 to go in the third period by a 46-43 score.

The first tie of the game came at the end of the first period when Filiere scored her seventh point of a 9-0 run for the Tartans to make it 17-17. The Violets would either hold the lead or be knotted with the Tartans until Pereira connected on a jump shot near the midway point of the third quarter for the Tartans' first lead.

The Tartans held UAA leading scorer Janean Cuffe to eight points but freshman Jenny Walker scored 18 points and grabbed 11 rebounds while freshman Brooklyn Shelton scored 11 points.

The Tartans will next host Brandeis University on Sunday, February 9 at 2:00 p.m.