Box Score Baltimore, Md. – Notre Dame of Maryland basketball team hosted Colonial States Athletic Conference opponent Marywood University in their final contest of the 2014-15 season.   The Gators would keep the game close, but the Pacers would pull out the win in the end, 53-43.

Seniors Marylu Ortiz (Oceanside, Calif. / El Camino) and Shaun-De' Jones (Baltimore, Md. / Poly) were honored before the matchup against the Pacers. 

The Gators were paced by sophomore Naimani Staley (Silver Spring, Md. / Blair) who recorded 12 points, with a season high four made three-pointers.  Allyson Whitacre (Jarrettsville, Md. /North Harford) tallied 10 points on the night, going 2-2 from the free throw line with three steals while Zaria Comer (Leesburg, Va. / Tuscarora) added a team high, eight rebounds.

Ortiz had three points on the night, recording her first and only made three-pointer of her career while reeling in three rebounds and adding a team high three assists.  Jones was second in rebounds with five, adding two steals.

The Pacers jumped out to an early lead, going up by six points within the first five minutes of play.  With 12:57 on the clock, Whitacre would put up the first points of the night for the Gators off her steal from the other end. 

On the opposite end of the court, Whitacre would grab her second steal of the night leading to a three-pointer by Staley, her first of four throughout the game, putting the Gators within one point of the Pacers.  After trading a pair of free throws, a jumper by Whitacre with 9:47 on the clock would see the Gators take their a 9-8 lead. 

After Notre Dame took the lead, Marywood would go on an eight point run, but again Notre Dame would fight back.  Back-to-back jumpers by Whitacre and Stephanie Roche (Baltimore, Md. / Perry Hall) would to cut the lead to within three points of the Pacers.

A three-pointer by Staley would see the Gators last points of the first half with 4:01 remaining as the Pacers would go on a 7-0 run to close out the half, 29-16.

To open up the second half, Marywood would continue to add to their lead, going up by 19 points with 15:48 remaining.  A jumper by Ashley Guy (Leonardtown, Md.) would lead a charge for the Gators.  Back-to-back three pointers by Staley and Ortiz with a pair of free throws by Whitacre would cut the lead to nine points with 12:04 on the clock to end the Gators 12-2 run and a score of 37-28.

A turnover by Notre Dame was converted into a layup for Marywood as they would again go on a 8-0 run, going up by 16 points with 9:43 left on the clock.  The Gators and Pacers would trade baskets for next seven minutes seeing Marywood still up by 16, but Notre Dame kept fighting back.

With two minutes left on the clock, Staley would down her last three-pointer of the night, followed by a jumper my Meghan O'Connor (Oxford, Pa.).  With one minute remaining, seniors Ortiz and Jones would make their final exits, seeing an end to two great careers.  Two late baskets by Comer and Freshman Jennifer Whiting (Perry Hall, Md.) would cut the lead to 10 points, but time would expire as the Gators would fall, 53-43.  In the loss, the Gators tallied 22 bench points while shooting 83.3% from the free throw lines.

In their 2014-15 season, the Gators demonstrated a wealth of improvements over the past several seasons.  Finishing the season with an overall record of 7-17, Notre Dame saw their best season since 2008-09 with more wins than their last four seasons combined.   As a team, Notre Dame scored over 1100 points, with 93 three pointers and 236 assists. 

On the defensive end, the Gators were five times nationally ranked in the top 25 for defensive rebounds per game, reaching their highest rank of seventh at the start of their season.  To date, Notre Dame sits atop of the CSAC rankings for defensive rebounds per game.

As a team, the Gators also reached several conference firsts throughout their season.   In December, Notre Dame saw their first conference road win since 2010 and first win over Baptist Bible since 2008-09.  Over the past four seasons, the Gators averaged only 29 points against CSAC opponent Gwynedd Mercy, but on January 7 they tallied 52 against the Griffins. 

On January 14, Notre Dame posted their highest point scored total in their 70-52 victory over Cairn since their 2009 season.  Last week, the Gators reached another milestone, securing their first back-to-back conference wins since 2009 when they defeated Cedar Crest, 57-54 and Baptist Bible, 51-27.