FINAL SCORE: Vermont 68, NJIT 55
Newark, NJ – Delaney Richason's memorable afternoon helped Vermont 11-7 (3-1 AE) dominate the NJIT Highlanders 8-8 (0-3 AE) Saturday afternoon as the Catamounts concluded a three-game road trip with a 2-1 record. The Catamount win leaves NJIT winless in the month of January, along with overall conference play, while UVM improves to 3-1 in the month and conference play.

RELATED LINKS
Box Score | Box Score (.pdf)
Postgame – Coach Kresge
 
COACH'S QUOTE
"League road wins are tough to come by and I am happy we came away with a win," said Mayer Head Women's Basketball Coach Alisa Kresge. "I'm proud of how we handled the ball and finished with 16 assists. We've got to do a much better job on the glass and improve our rebounding."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The first attempt for Vermont was a three ball from Emma Utterback, which opened the scoring for Vermont Saturday afternoon. NJIT responded with a three-pointer on its first possession as well, tying the score 3-3
• On the next possession, Anna Olson made a move in the post getting herself in position for an easy layup to extend the Catamounts lead, 5-3.
• Utterback scored seven of the Catamounts first nine points to propel Vermont to an early lead they would never look back from. Keira Hanson got involved early scoring four consecutive points for UVM, to help seize a 14-6 lead with 3:37 left in the first quarter.
• Richason put Vermont up by double digits, 16-6, after converting on her first bucket of the day with a layup.
• Vermont was off to a red-hot start shooting 62% in the first quarter, taking a 22-12 lead heading into the second quarter. Olson cashed in a buzzer beater jumper to conclude the opening quarter.
• Similar to the first quarter, Utterback got the scoring started for Vermont in the second by creating her own space and swishing a smooth floater inside the paint.
• Bella Vito drained her first three-point attempt of the game with 6:54 remaining in the half, keeping Vermont up by a double-digit margin.
• Incredible vision from Richadson set up Paula Gonzalez under the basket for an easy layup to put Vermont ahead 31-22.
• Catamounts came out of halftime and took complete control, going on a quick 6-0 scoring run led by Gonzalez, who scored four points to help Vermont seize a 37-22 lead. NJIT responded with a bucket before Olson scored on the other end with a layup to force NJIT in to a timeout and give Vermont a commanding 39-24 lead.
• At the 5:52 mark in the third quarter, Richason reached the 1,000-career point milestone when she sank both her free throws after being fouled under the basket on a layup attempt. Richason is the 26th Catamount to reach that mark. She scored two more points on the following possession giving Vermont a 17-point lead, the largest of the game to that point, 47-30.
• The third quarter expired with both teams trading buckets at the free throw line and Utterback draining her sixth basket to that point. The Catamounts went into the last quarter holding onto a comfortable lead, 54-36.
• Utterback hit a dagger three-pointer with 7:01 remaining in the game to put Vermont up 61-44, and ultimately seal the win.
• Vermont never took its foot off the gas, and with an easy layup from Nikola Priede with 35 seconds remaining the Catamounts earned the victory, 68-55.

 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:

• Utterback scored a game-high 20 points, shooting 8-14 from the field as well as going 2-3 from long distance.
• Olson finished second on the Catamounts in scoring with 16 points on an impressive 8-10 shooting from the field.
• Richason became the 26th player in program history to record 1,000 points and the second player this season. UVM now has three 1,000 point scorers on the squad.
• To go along with Richason's career day offensively, she also recorded a team high three blocks.
• Vito produced a career-high seven assists for the Catamounts to go along with tying a game high, three steals. Olson also tallied three steals on Saturday afternoon.
• Vermont shot 29-61 from the field, 47.5% while holding NJIT to just 33.9% shooting percentage from the field.
• UVM also won the turnover battle, only committing nine to the Highlanders 21.
• The Catamounts are 9-1 on the season when scoring 60 points or more.

 
UP NEXT:
The Catamounts return home to continue conference play Thursday, January 18, as they prepare to take on a struggling Binghamton Bearcats team. Thursday's game is set for a 6 p.m. tip off at Patrick Gymnasium and will be live on ESPN+.

Vermont Federal Credit Union is the presenting sponsor of Vermont Women's Basketball