Close call on College Road
Falcons down Arrows in eastside rumble
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SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio– For 20 minutes Monday, the Notre Dame Falcons did everything wrong.  They committed costly turnovers, got in foul trouble, missed shots.  Then, for the next 20 minutes of game play, Notre Dame did everything right.  They made shots in the paint and from beyond the 3-point line.  They rebounded, passed the ball well, and played tenacious defense.  The end result was a come-from-behind victory for Notre Dame over eastside rival Ursuline, 87-81.

The win for Notre Dame pulls the Falcons into a tie with Daemen College (NY) for the lead in the North Division of the American Mideast Conference (AMC).  Both the Falcons and Wildcats are undefeated in their first five circuit games.  The victory for Notre Dame is also their fifth straight this season and their 16th straight over Ursuline. 

Notre Dame (13-3, 4-0) struggled early shooting the ball.  In the opening half, the Falcons made just seven of their first 24 attempts from the floor.  Ursuline (9-10, 3-3) took advantage and built a 25-18 lead by the nine-minute mark.

Jessica Wood (Jr/Warren, OH) paced the Arrows early on, scoring eight points and hauling down six rebounds in the first 12 minutes of play.  Notre Dame never was able to right the ship in the first with their shooting – the Falcons shot just 27.3 percent (12-for-44) in the opening period.  Other than Amanda Brown’s  (So/Vienna, VA) 15 first –half points, NDC was unable to muster much offense.  Wood and teammate Whitney Blackburn (Jr), on the other hand, scored 10 each to open up a 47-37 lead for the Arrows by the break.

NDC’s top two scorers, Ashley Carney (Jr/Solon, OH) and Molly Baker (Jr/Avon Lake, OH), combined to go 0-for-10 in the first, with no points between them.

In the second, Baker scored a quick seven, and the Falcons cut the UC lead to 57-51 by the 15-minute mark.  By the 10-minute mark, Ursuline was clinging to a 3-point lead, 63-60.  Notre Dame took the lead on a Carney drive to the basket at 8:17.

The Arrows and Falcons traded baskets for the next few minutes; by the 5-minute mark, NDC had a 74-73 lead with their offense finally clicking.  The Falcons continued to go to Baker, who continued to hit shots in the paint and from beyond the arc.  NDC also amped up their defensive pressure, forcing the Arrows into tougher shots than they saw in the first.

By the one-minute mark, the Falcons had an 83-77 lead.  Brown hit a pair of tosses from the free throw line to extend the NDC lead to eight, 85-77.  The Falcons then ran out the clock on a close call on College Road. The final score on the Murphy Gymnasium scoreboard was 87-81, as the Falcons walked off the court with a win that was in doubt well into the evening.

Offensively, Notre Dame was led by Brown, who scored a season-high 25 points.  Brown scored her 25 on 7-of-10 shooting from the floor and a 10-of-12 night at the charity stripe.  Molly Baker added 22 points, all of which came in the second stanza.  Junior forward Jamie Henry (Garfield Heights, OH) scored 11, and grabbed an NDC single-game-record 20 rebounds.

The Falcons shot 50.0 percent (19-for-38) in the second half and outscored the Arrows, 50-34.

Both teams shot nearly the same percentage for the game: UC shot 37.7 percent (26-for-69); NDC shot 37.8 percent (31-for-82).  Both teams got to the line frequently:  Ursuline hit on 19 of 25 from the line (76.0 percent), while Notre Dame connected on 21 of 27 (77.8 percent).

The Arrows were led by Whitney Blackburn, who scored 21 points.  The UC junior, who leads the AMC in 3-pointers made (3.3 per game), went 4-of-7 beyond the arc.  Jessica Wood added 15 points and 11 boards for the Arrows.

The win for Notre Dame came in what is the third game of a five-game home stand.  The Falcons will continue that home stand Wednesday, when they host the Lady Racers of Northwestern Ohio.   Tip off in the first game of women’s-men’s doubleheader against UNOH is slated for 6:00pm.

NOTES FROM THE NEST…

HOME, SWEET HOME:  With Monday’s home court win against Ursuline, Notre Dame now sports a 6-1 mark at home this season.  The environs of Murphy Gymnasium have been kind to the Falcons in the last four years.  Over their last 52 games on their home hardwood, the Blue & Gold are 45-7 (.865 winning percentage).

OH, HENRY:  With her 20 rebounds Monday night against Ursuline, Jamie Henry broke her own single-game school record that she set earlier this year.  The Falcons’ junior forward, who has started all 17 NDC games this year, collected 19 boards at St. Vincent College (PA) Nov. 24.  On Monday, Henry grabbed 10 offensive and 10 defensive rebounds.  She has averaged 10.5 boards per contest over the Falcons’ last six games.