SALEM, Mass. – Senior Simona Gordon (Cambridge, Mass.) scored a career-high 33 points en route to being named the Salem State Tip-Off Tournament MVP as the Manhattanville women's basketball team defeated the host Vikings, 75-61, in the Championship Game of the Salem State Tip-off Tournament on Saturday afternoon at Twohig Gymnasium.
Gordon becomes the first Valiant since Olivia Nastasi '09 to score 30 or more points in a game. With the 33 points, she jumps into a tie for sixth place in the single-game record, recording the most points by a Valiant in a game in over 23 years since Karen Vercelli had 41 points against New York University on February 1, 1986.
The Valiants as a team combined for 26 field goals, but free throws won the game for the Valiants as the team shot 74 percent from the charity stripe.
Sophomore Janetta Arnold (Windsor, Conn.) was also a big part of the contest as her 19 points on 5-of-8 from the field and 8-of-10 from the line earned her a spot on the All-Tournament team. Arnold also led the team in rebounds with eight, including grabbing five on the offensive side of the glass. Classmate Taylor Wilson (Pearl River, N.Y.) finished third on the team with seven points and was the third member of the All-Tournament team after a stellar weekend.
Three members of the Vikings finished in double-figures as Margaret Wallace led her team with 16 points, followed by a pair of 10-point games by Breanna Comeau and Shary Martinez. The Vikings pulled down seven more rebounds (44-37) then the Valiants over the contest, but struggled with ball control and turned over the rock 29 times.
Salem State controlled most of the first half with leads nearing double digits until the Valiants battled back from a nine-point deficit with 8:15 remaining in the first half and changed the momentum of the game. Senior point guard Carey Hickey (Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.) began a 13-2 run for the Valiants with a three-pointer as the team went on to take a 31-29 lead at the half. Gordon finished the half with just nine points, as the team shot 35 percent from the field.
The Valiants led the entire way through the second half and took its largest lead of 15 points on three occasions throughout the period. The Valiants went on a 13-0 run early in the final stanza to take control of the game, with seven points from Arnold and five points from Gordon during the run. The Valiants kept the intensity alive in the half as they did not let the Vikings to within two possessions of tying the contest.
Salem State went on a mini 7-0 run to cut the deficit to eight, but the Valiants moved their lead back to double-digits after trading baskets in the latter part of the half. With less than five minutes remaining in the contest, the Valiants pulled away with a double-digit lead as they came away with the 14-point win.
Gordon had a tremendous second half for Manhattanville, scoring 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting. Arnold was also a main contributor as she scored 12 points in the final 20 minutes, with six coming from the line.
Hickey was reliable at the point for the Valiants as well, as she finished with seven assists and had five steals.
Manhattanville (2-1) will get a bit of a breather as they will have off until next Saturday when they take on Eastern Connecticut State University on the road at 2 p.m. Salem State (1-1) will also have time off as they host Tufts on November 30.