MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. – The RMU women's basketball team won in convincing fashion against Youngstown State on Senior Night, 76-53. The Colonials have now improved to 13-15 on the season and own a 9-10 record in Horizon League play.
 

FIRST QUARTER

• The Colonials didn't get off to the start they hoped for as RMU only scored two points in the first three plus minutes of action.
• However, RMU was able to find their footing and would hold the Penguins scoreless for over four minutes as the Colonials capitalized from beyond the arc thanks to Katelyn Chomko and Noa Givon.
• Youngstown State closed the gap with a triple of their own but the Colonials maintained a three-point lead heading into the second quarter.

SECOND QUARTER

• Collectively, this was one of RMU's best quarters all season long as they outscored Youngstown State 20-7 in the frame and held the Penguins to 10 percent shooting from the field.
• Chomko became unhinged in this frame as she connected on three straight triples to give RMU a quick 28-12 lead.
• RMU's defense was just air tight all quarter long forcing five Penguin turnovers as the Colonials headed to the break with a convincing 16-point advantage.

THIRD QUARTER

• The Penguins shot their highest percentage at 46 percent in this frame but it didn't matter as the Colonials offense was even better shooting a game-high 57 percent from the field.
• Noa Givon was the constant engine for RMU in this stanza as she scored 10 of her 20 points in this frame.
• Another key factor for the Colonials in this quarter was their interior presence as RMU outscored the Penguins 12-6 in this frame.

 FOURTH QUARTER

• Jada Lee got things started for the Colonials in this frame as she made two straight shots from beyond the arc to give the Colonials momentum.
• The Norse kept on fighting back as the visitors shrunk the RMU lead to just two points at the one-minute mark.
• Lee made the most crucial shot of the game thereafter to give the Colonials more of a cushion and would force Northern Kentucky to foul in the final seconds.
• Grady made two free throws with nine seconds remaining that put the game on ice as the Colonials would go onto win, 63-59.

 
ONE STEP CLOSER
With a win tonight against Youngstown State along with a Cleveland State win over Wright State, RMU has now clinched as high as a fifth seed for the upcoming Horizon League Championships. The Colonials will have an opportunity on Saturday to clinch the fourth seed along with a double bye home game next Thursday if they defeat Wright State to close their regular season. The RMU women's basketball team has never played a home postseason game in the Horizon League Tournament in the five years since joining the conference.
 
QUOTABLES
Head Coach Chandler McCabe opened her postgame statement by describing what this senior class has meant to her this season "I, quite frankly, have not let it hit me yet. If I did, I probably would be crying. These kids mean a lot to me, every single one of them, regardless of playing time, regardless of how long they've been here, right? I've only been able to coach them for one season, and the fact that they bought into this program brought into me the staff this university. Some of them chose to come here, like Maya, she was about to go be a doctor. She didn't have to play another year of basketball, and she's giving it everything that she has. And I could go through the line. Unfortunately, there's 10 seniors, so I don't want us here all night, but every single one of them are extremely special to me, and they're great basketball players. They are even better human beings, and I got really, really lucky and blessed to be able to coach them." McCabe then spoke about the team's mindset and how to keep the squad clear-minded heading to March, "Ever since November 5th, which was our first game, we have told the players that the next game is the most important game, and that's all we're going to continue to say, because Cleveland State is the most important game on schedule period." McCabe closed her statement by describing how prepared the team was to face Youngstown State for a second time, "But, you know, being able to honor those old ladies, we talked about that all week and just saying, Hey, let's go out there and play hard. And so, you know, we our staff. I always say we have the best staff in the country. They prepared them perfectly. We had a lot of their calls. They had a lot of our calls, but as long as we were able to do what we were supposed to do, we knew we'd come out with a, you know, with a W."

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Noa Givon led the charge for RMU as she recorded her first double-double of the season with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Katelyn Chomko came off the bench and made an impact in a big way with 15 points, all of which coming from beyond the arc. Isys Grady filled the stat sheet as she had 11 points, six rebounds, and three assists for the Colonials. Mya Murray rounded out the RMU double-digit scorers as she had 10 points along with four rebounds and a team-high three blocks.

UP NEXT
The Colonials will close out their regular season schedule with a trip to Wright State on Saturday afternoon. Tipoff is at 2 p.m. and can be seen live on ESPN+.
 
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