Moon Township, Pa. – The Robert Morris University women's basketball clinched its first Northeast Conference (NEC) regular season championship since the 2013-14 season with a 62-48 victory over Fairleigh Dickinson this evening from the Charles L. Sewall Center.
Robert Morris (19-10, 14-4 NEC) led Fairleigh Dickinson (8-21, 6-12 NEC) wire-to-wire, starting with a 19-8 difference in the first quarter. The Colonials shot 47.9 percent (23-of-48) from the floor and received a game-high 22 points from Anna Niki Stamolamprou, along with 11 points from fellow senior Rebeca Navarro.
"It was nice to get the opportunity to host [the NEC Tournament] throughout if we do our job," said head coach Charlie Buscaglia. "This team is built on not looking at standings or rankings, but rather the next game. The players are the same way – I never hear about another team three games down the road. Everyone is drilled into who our next opponent is. No matter what, we'll give it our all."
RMU, which entered the game outscoring its NEC opponents by an average of 4.53 points in the first quarter, scored the first nine points to jump ahead early. FDU cut the deficit to 12-6 over the next three minutes, before a long jumper from Janee Brown sparked a 7-2 stretch that expanded the gap to 11 points.
The visitors fought back in the second quarter, pulling within seven on three different occasions before a Stamolamprou step-back three-pointer beat the buzzer to make it 36-26 at halftime. That gave the hosts momentum, which led to an 11-6 third quarter edge that essentially put the game out of reach.
"We got a little too comfortable in the second quarter and gave them too many good looks," said Buscaglia. "We talked about moving forward [at halftime] and I was proud of the players for coming out in the third quarter by establishing themselves again and playing with a good pace. That [11-2] run [over the third and fourth quarters] wasn't just offense; that was our defense."
The Colonials made 7-of-13 attempts from deep and registered an assist on 15 of their 23 made field goals.
Stamolamprou added team highs in rebounds (7), assists (4), and steals (3). Nia Adams came off the bench to provide a season-best nine points on 3-of-5 shooting in 20 minutes.
"Anna [Niki Stamolamprou] was steady for us all night," said Buscaglia. "When we needed a bucket, she came through and she did a good job taking care of the ball. Anna's been a great leader and I'm really proud of how she has developed, not only as a great basketball player but as a great person. I think that's showing when there are moments of adversity."
This is the fifth NEC regular season title that RMU has shared or claimed outright, previously winning conference crowns in 2006-07, 2007-08, 2009-10, and 2013-14.
The defending NEC Tournament champion, Robert Morris will begin pursuit of its seventh league playoff crown (1988, 1991, 2007, 2008, 2014, 2016) on Sunday, March 5 at 1:00 p.m. against eighth-seeded Fairleigh Dickinson.
