January 8, 2018

Elon
ElonWomen’s
Women’sBasketball
BasketballGame
Game– –January
January2018
2018

Elon, NC – After exchanging the lead several times over the course of the game, the Elon
Phoenix defeat the Northeastern Huskies, 78-71, in the final quarter at Alumni Gym on Sunday
afternoon.

The Phoenix went into the game after a difficult loss against Delaware on Friday, ranking them
as 9-4 overall and 1-1 in CAA.

“[I wanted] to light a fire under the team and get a sense of urgency going because every game
matters in this league and you can’t be complacent. You can’t take anybody for granted, “ Coach
Charlotte Smith said.

Sophomore center Ra’Shika White led Elon, scoring 15 points, 8 rebounds, and 1 assist and
sophomore guard Lexi Mercer with 13 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists. Also contributing, were
sophomore Jada Graves and senior Meme Garner with 9 points each.

Northeastern senior guard Claudia Ortiz led the Huskies over the course of the game scoring 31
points, 14 of which were in the first quarter. Sophomore Shannon Todd and junior Jess Genco
assisted Ortiz by contributing 12 and 11 points respectively, over the course of the game.

In the first quarter, the Phoenix and Huskies retained a 4-point difference, but matched after
White scored a free throw in the final 45 seconds. Earlier in the quarter, freshman Ariel Colon
and Graves each scored 3-pointers as Elon’s defense kept on the Huskies before closing the first
period, 15-15.

“[We] can’t control everything but Coach says we need to control what we can control.
Turnovers and fouls are some things we can control so just being smart about things and taking
care of the ball so when we are not doing that it does affect our game,” senior Malaya Johnson
said.

Graves brought the Phoenix to the lead, at the start of the second quarter, after a lay up.
Northeastern’s Ortiz then tied the game, again, with 4 minutes left in the second half, 23-23, with
an assist by freshman Jasmin Watson. Elon’s Garner took a rebound in the closing seconds of the
first half earning the Phoenix a 4-point lead, 32-28.

“Our biggest point of emphasis is we want to establish inside out whether it be by penetration or
getting the ball inside to both Ra’Shika and Malaya because we are constantly feeling like they
are capable scorers so we just need to get a little more confidence down in there because we want
to get the ball inside,” Coach Smith said.

The Huskies senior guard Claudia Ortiz (4) came out hungry after half time, opening with a lay
up, followed by a 3-point throw, in the first minute. Ortiz continued her streak throughout the
half, eventually tying the game again. In the final seconds of the third quarter, Genco brought the
Huskies back to the lead 56-54 with a free throw.
“We have 10 minutes and we have to fight. You have to go out in the first five minutes and try to
put the nails in the coffin is what we call it, and having a sense of urgency defensively because I
felt like throughout the game we struggled a little bit with ball strength and making sure we
contained our ball strength defense,” Coach Smith said.

Elon stole the lead, 69-63, after Mercer shot a 3 pointer and assisted freshman forward Jaylin
Powell, which followed a timeout by Northeastern with 2 minutes on the clock.

“We started getting a flow going offensively and we started executing and getting in a roll that’s
when things started to work out. Playing defense brought some energy to us,” Mercer said.

Elon is scheduled to play their next CAA game against James Madison University in
Harrisonburg, Va on Friday, January 12.