Cougars Win 17th Straight

Cougars Win 17th Straight
Kean Athletics

Mahwah, N.J. (1/16/10) - Junior Tiffany Patrick (Piscataway, N.J.) recorded her eighth double-double of the season as Kean won their 17th straight contest defeating Ramapo College, 79-64, Saturday evening. Patrick (pictured right) finished with 22 points and 18 rebounds to help KU improve to 17-1 overall and 6-0 in New Jersey Athletic Conferenc (NJAC) action.

The Roadrunners jumped out to a 5-0 lead after a quick three-point shot and jumper from Brittany Hoffman (Belford, N.J.) just under one minute into the game. Free throws put Kean on the scoreboard but with nine turnovers over the next nine minutes, Ramapo spread their lead to nine, 22-13, halfway through the first half. The Cougars responded with an 11-2 run, sparked by a three-point goal from Melissa Beyruti (Union City, N.J.) and capped off with a jump shot from Patrick, to tie the game for the first time at 24 with 7:14 on the clock. Senior Cardiss Jackman (Tobyhanna, Pa.) gave the Cougars their first lead of the game hitting two free throws just under one minute later to go up, 26-24. The remaining minutes in the half remained close but Kean headed into the intermission holding a slight edge, 37-35.

Patrick led Kean with 15 points and eight boards in the first 20 minutes of play.

Kean hit six three-point goals in the second half and controlled the lead for the full 20 minutes, besides a 37-37 tie in the opening minute. The Cougars earned their biggest lead at 1:43 when Jackman knocked down the game's eighth three-point goal for an 18-point, 79-61, lead.

Beyruti (pictured left) netted 21 points of her own on five treys to bring her career total to 374 while Jackman finished the night with 18 points of her own.

With the win, head coach Michele Sharp collected her 200th victory at Kean University, putting her career total at Kean at 200-120 in 12 seasons.