JERSEY CITY, N.J. — The New Jersey City University women's basketball team stayed hot on Wednesday night, Jan. 25, and picked up its seventh victory in a row. The Gothic Knights played tight with William Paterson University all night long, but a big-time third quarter and a late surge in the fourth helped NJCU top the Pioneers, 74-62.

The Green and Gold (9-8, 9-3 NJAC) and William Paterson (11-8, 6-6 NJAC) went back and forth in the first quarter, with the Pioneers taking a one-point, 13-12 lead after 10 minutes of play. WPU then turned it on late in the second quarter with a 7-0 run in the final two and a half minutes to take a six-point, 29-23 lead into the half.

For the Gothic Knights, the second half was a totally different story as they outscored the Pioneers 51-33 en route to the 12-point victory. Junior guard Damaris Rodriguez (Secaucus, N.J./Secaucus) poured in 22 of her game-best 32 points in the second half, while sophomore center Liyah Allen (Hillside, N.J./Hillside) pulled down 11 of her season- and game-high 15 rebounds in the second half, including six huge boards in the final five minutes of the game.

The third quarter saw Jersey City take a 22-11 advantage, completely flipping the script of the game. NJCU took a few leads and kept it close until, trailing by one at 37-36, the squad closed out the half on a 9-3 run to take a five-point, 45-40 lead after 30:00 of play. In the fourth quarter, the Pioneers crawled back into it and managed to get within one at 55-54 with 4:54 to go. From that point forward, NJCU outscored WPU 18-8 to close out the victory.

Allen started off the run with the offensive board and immediately put the layup back in at 4:43 and drew the foul — she made the free throw — to make it 58-54. After the Pioneers split a pair of shots at the stripe, Rodriguez made it a five-point game before causing a turnover and finding junior forward Kyara Cowan (Maywood, N.J./Hackensack) in transition for another bucket. Later on, rookie forward Jalynn Clark (Irvington, N.J./Elizabeth) sank a lay-in at 2:57 to make it a seven-point game — she then stretched it out to 10 with a pair under the basket at 2:13 to make it 68-58. The Pioneers cut it back to eight with under a minute to go, but senior forward Jasmine Reese (Jersey City, N.J./Hudson Catholic) and one free throw each from Allen and senior guard Jada Camacho (Jersey City, N.J./Dickinson) sealed the win.

Highlights:
- Rodriguez added game-highs in assists (6) and steals (5) in a team-best 38 minutes on the floor.
- Junior center Jimmirah Johnson (Prospect Park, N.J./International) was NJCU's second-leading scorer with nine to go with six rebounds and a block.
- Camacho and Allen each finished with eight points apiece. Camacho added six rebounds, two steals and a game-high-tying two blocks. Allen added a pair of blocks to her big night on the boards, as well.
- Reese finished with seven points and seven rebounds.
- The Gothic Knights outscored the Pioneers 22-7 in second-chance points. NJCU's bench also outscored that of WPU, 21-5. Down low, Jersey City held the 44-26 points in the paint advantage.

Up Next:
The Green and Gold return to action on Saturday afternoon, Jan. 28, back at the John J. Moore Athletics and Fitness Center (JMAC) as Kean University comes to town. The Gothic Knights look for the season sweep over the Cougars, as well as their eighth straight win.