Smithfield, R.I. – The Robert Morris University women's basketball team remained unbeaten in Northeast Conference (NEC) play this afternoon, escaping Bryant University with a 60-57 victory in the third game of a four-game road swing.
Owning a two-point lead with 33 seconds remaining, Robert Morris (8-8, 5-0 NEC) junior forward Nadège Pluviose denied Bryant's (4-12, 2-3 NEC) leading scorer Sydney Holloway at the rim, keeping the Colonials ahead. Nina Augustin was fouled soon after and split a pair of free throws, making it 60-57 with 27.1 on the clock. Holloway then slipped open at the top of the key after a long possession, but her three-point attempt rattled out with as time expired.
"We made some mistakes and some big plays," said head coach Charlie Buscaglia. "We have a lot to learn from this experience. We have to continue to get a little bit better from this, but it's a road win."
Holloway's and-one with 4:46 left in the third quarter gave Bryant its first lead at 35-33. Nneka Ezeigbo found Natalie Villaflor on the block for an immediate answer, but Hannah Scanlan pulled down three offensive boards and put back the last one to regain the Bulldog advantage.
Augustin came down on the next possession and converted on a left-handed drive to tie it, then Taty LaFrance Boyce split a pair at the stripe to make it 38-37. Villaflor struck again with a bucket plus the foul to put RMU in front, then after another Scanlan follow-up, Esther Castedo and Augustin drilled back-to-back threes and an Ozzy-Momodu putback made it 48-42 Colonials.
"Right as that was happening, I was talking to the bench about how this is a great moment for Natalie as a freshman," said Buscaglia of Villaflor's third-quarter run. "She showed a lot of toughness, to take it to the hole like that and finish strong. When you have a freshman out there in a big moment making big plays, it's a great feeling for everyone – not just her but the whole team."
Bryant trimmed the gap to 51-50 with 5:23 left with another Scanlan layup. Three straight scoreless possessions kept the score the same before Ezeigbo grabbed her fifth steal at the high post and finished with a baseline jumper. Nia Adams followed that two free throws, then Ezeigbo split a pair after a Holloway bucket, making it 56-52 with 3:04 remaining.
Haley Connors drilled a baseline trey with 1:26 on the clock to cut the gap to one, but Irekpitan Ozzy-Momodu used her strength to respond on the other end. Macey Zegarowski made two foul shots to make it 58-57, then Isabella Posset split a couple to set the stage for Pluviose's stand.
"It was a big play," said Buscaglia of Pluviose's block. "She showed great focus, because not everything went her way today. She locked in on that play and did a great job serving her team out there. She worked hard to get that block, it was a great highlight for her."
Ezeigbo led RMU with 12 points (5-7 FG), eight rebounds, and five steals. Augustin added 10 points on 2-of-3 from deep off the bench. As a team, the Colonials shot 43.8 percent (21-48) from the floor.
This is the fifth time RMU has started the conference slate at 5-0, joining the 2005-06, 2009-10, 2010-11, and 2017-18 teams.
Robert Morris concludes a four-game road swing on Monday, Jan. 21 at 1:00 p.m. against Central Connecticut.
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