EWING, NJ – The starting five scored nearly all of the points as Rutgers-Newark took heavily-favored The College of New Jersey into overtime before losing, 61-59, in Packard Hall in a New Jersey Athletic Conference contest.
TCNJ 61, Rutgers-Newark 59 (OT)
Junior guard
Martyna Ruminska, who finished with 15 points, six rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots, drained her fourth 3-point jumper of the game with 1:10 left in regulation to knot the score at 56-56 and send the game into overtime. Ruminska connected on half of her 3-point attempts as the Scarlet Raiders (7-10, NJAC 2-4) made eight of 14 shots from beyond the arc in regulation.
Rutgers-Newark had chances to win in overtime, but their only points and their only lead of the extra session came on a trey by sophomore guard
Samantha Grippo with 3:46 left. The Raiders led, 59-58, but TCNJ sophomore forward Hannah Tait’s 3-point jumper just 32 seconds later proved the final points of the afternoon. Rutgers-Newark missed on five layup attempts and a pair of treys during the final three minutes.
The Lions (9-7, NJAC 3-2) led by as many as 10 points in the second half, but they could not break away from the pesky Raiders as senior forward
Courtney Vacca netted 10 of her team-high 18 points by making four of five shots from the floor and both of her free throws. Vacca notched her ninth straight double-double with a game-high 10 rebounds plus a game-high six steals, a team-high four assists and two blocked shots.
Sophomore guard
Jared Tactuk dropped in three of six 3-point attempts on her way to 14 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals while Grippo finished with eight points, two assists and a steal. Grippo made both of her 3-point attempts.
Tait poured in a game-high 25 points, making five of 10 shots from beyond the arc, while grabbing five rebounds for the Lions. Junior guard Keri Washington chipped in 11 points and seven rebounds for TCNJ which made 10 of 29 3-point attempts.
But, the Raiders’ iron horse starting five accounted for all by one point of the team’s offensive output against the much deeper Lions’ squad. Rutgers-Newark suffered its third straight NJAC loss.
Rutgers-Newark’s women now have a week to regroup before travelling to 17-1 and No. 3 nationally-ranked Kean next Saturday. The Cougars’ lone loss this season came in their season opener at Division I Rutgers University. Tip off for the women’s game in the NJAC doubleheader will be 1 p.m. with the men’s game to follow at 3 o’clock.