KINGS POINT, N.Y. (December 3, 2011) – The Rangers picked up their first Landmark Conference win with a 65-50 victory over Merchant Marine (0-3, 0-1) earlier this evening. Drew climbed back to the .500 mark, improving its record to 3-3 on the year and 1-0 in conference play.
The Rangers were led by senior Danielle Barber (Cape May Court House, N.J./Middle Twp.) who netted 17 points and surpassed Cara Williams for eighth place on Drew's all-time leading scorers list. Barber added a team-high seven rebounds and dished off a game-high six assists in the win. Junior Victoria Ault (Middletown, N.J./Mater Dei) helped pace the Rangers with 15 points and three rebounds.
The Rangers withstood an initial Mariner push in the opening minutes where they found themselves trailing by as many as six. The Rangers went on a 10-0 run beginning with an Ault jumper in the paint in the 15th minute, and owned a four-point advantage with 13:08 remaining in the half. The Rangers would not trail for the remainder of the frame and had a nine-point lead at the break.
Ault helped the Rangers pull away in the final 20 minutes, recording 10 of her 15 points in the second half. Jennifer Mateo (Union City, N.J./Union City) was an offensive catalyst in the closing period, dishing out five assists and pulling down a career-high seven rebounds to go along with five points.
The win was the fifth-straight over the Mariners who were led by Tamara Kaileh's 14 points and five rebounds.
The Rangers will begin to prepare for cross-street rival Fairleigh Dickinson who comes to Baldwin Gym on Wednesday. The game will be the first part of a men's and women's doubleheader beginning at 6:00 p.m.