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Nov. 11, 2012

Box Score |  Photo Gallery 

Ithaca, N.Y. - A win is a win, no matter how it comes. Following the team's solid win over Albany on Friday night, the Fordham women's basketball team fought through some not-so-pretty moments on Sunday, but still found a way to pull out a 58-50 win over the Cornell Big Red at Newman Arena in Ithaca, N.Y.

The win improves Fordham to 2-0 for the first time since the 2002-03 season and 2-0 on the road for the first time since the 2004-05 season. The loss dropped Cornell to 1-1.

Early action was a bit sloppy as Fordham led 7-2, six minutes into the game, as Marah Strickland hit her first three-pointer as a Ram. Fordham was able to keep the five-point lead through the midway point of the first half on made free throws by Strickland, making it 18-13 with 7:52 left.

The Rams later connected for back-to-back three pointers from Erin Rooney and Arielle Collins, extending the lead to six with just over five minutes left in the half. However, Cornell closed with a 10-4 surge to knot the game at 28 by halftime.

At the half, Strickland led all Fordham scorers with seven points and four rebounds with Rooney checking in with five points and four boards. Cornell did shoot well for the first period, hitting 45.8% from the floor, led by Allyson DiMagno's seven points and four rebounds.

The seesaw affair continued in the second half, as the Big Red got the initial lead on a three-point play by Clare Fitzpatrick, but Fordham quickly regained the lead on a lay-up by Samantha Clark and another three-pointer from Collins with 14:40 left.

Samantha Clark puts in a lay-up to regain the lead for Fordham

The lead would go no farther than four points over the next seven minutes, as the Big Red eventually knotted the game at 46 on a Spencer Lane jumper at the 7:05 mark.

Fordham's Emily Tapio put the Rams back ahead by two, 48-46, on a lay-up, which was later followed by a free throw and a lay-up by Strickland to put the lead at 51-46 with 3:02 remaining.

Cornell closed to within one, 51-50, and was forced into sending Rooney to the free throw line for a one-and-one with 1:30 left. Rooney calmly canned both shots and would make four more free throws to put the game out of reach and give Fordham its first 2-0 start in a decade.

Rebounding was one of the big reasons for the Fordham victory, as the Rams edged Cornell by a 41-25 margin, and included 16 offensive rebounds. Fordham would cash in on those opportunities with 17 second chance points, compared to eight for the Big Red. The Rams also clamped down defensively in the second half, holding Cornell to just 22 points in the final 20 minutes.

For Fordham, Rooney led the way with 15 points, five rebounds, and the crucial 6-for-6 from the free throw line in the final 1:30 of the game. Strickland added 10 points, six rebounds, and three assists in her debut as a Ram with Collins chipping in eight points. Abigail Corning ended up with six points, eight rebounds, and four assists, while the bench frontcourt duo of Emily Tapio (6 pts., 6 rebs.) and Samantha Clark (7 pts., 6 rebs.) combined for 13 points and 12 rebounds.

Cornell was led by DiMagno's 11 points, nine rebounds, and four steals.

The Fordham women's basketball team will next be in action on Sunday, November 18th, when the Rams host the Delaware State Hornets in the team's home opener at the Rose Hill Gym at 2:00 PM.