Jan. 13, 2012

Box Score

LOUDONVILLE, N.Y. - Looking to snap a three-game losing streak, all Siena needed was a home date with Niagara to turn things around. The Saints posted their eighth straight home win over Purple Eagles, rallying for a 62-49 win Friday night at the ARC.

Siena (4-10, 2-3), which overall has won nine of the last 10 meetings in the series, continued their Capital Region dominance over Niagara (5-12, 2-3). During their eight-game home court winning streak over the Purple Eagles, the Saints have won by an average of 16.2 points.

The Saints raced out to an early 28-14 lead with 4:59 remaining in the first half and threatened to put the game away early. But Siena's offense cooled off as Niagara clawed its way back.

The Purple Eagles went on an 11-1 run early in the second half capped by a Chanel Johnson three, giving Niagara its first lead of the game 36-35 with 12:36 remaining.

After several back and forth minutes in which the Saints reclaimed a 42-40 lead, the Green and Gold clamped down on the defensive end. The Saints held Niagara without a field goal for the next eight and a half minutes in which they orchestrated a 9-1 run to secure the win.

Siena took advantage of 23 Niagara turnovers, turning them in to 24 points. Additionally, the Saints were dominant in the low post where they tallied 30 of their points.

Lily Grenci had another typically dominating performance posting a game-high 19 points and nine rebounds. Cristina Centeno added 18 points - 12 of which came from the foul line - and seven rebounds. Centeno and the Saints capitalized at the charity stripe where they took 19 more shots and made 13 more free throws than Niagara.

Johnson led Niagara with 11 points off the bench, while Kayla Stroman added 10 points and four steals.

Tehresa Coles was solid all-around with nine points and five steals, while Kate Zarotney contributed a career-high 10 rebounds.

Siena returns to action Sunday to face Loyola at 2 p.m. in Baltimore.