University of Albany Rallies in 53-43 America East Women's Basketball Win Over Vermont - UAlbany Sports 2011

Albany, N.Y. - Ebone Henry and Julie Forster each scored 14 points as UAlbany came from behind in the second half for a 53-43 victory over Vermont in America East Conference play on Sunday, Jan. 30 at SEFCU Arena. The Great Danes snapped an eight-game losing streak in the series.

UAlbany (12-9, AE 5-3) trailed by six at halftime, but then ran off eight unanswered to take its first lead. Forster, a 6-foot sophomore who added 10 rebounds for her seventh double-double of the season, made a follow shot before Adrienne Jones hit a 12-foot jumper to put her team up 29-27.

Vermont (2-19, AE 2-6) went back ahead behind the play of Tonya Young. The 6-foot-2 senior connected on a turnaround in the lane and split two free throws. She finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Lauren Wheeler's foul shot gave her squad a 31-29 lead.

But the Great Danes, using a full-court pressure, would break the contest open with a run of 16 straight points. During that stretch, UVM managed just one of 12 field goals and turned the ball over 11 times. Cassanda Callaway's 3-pointer from the right corner put her team on top for good. Henry scored with an offensive rebound and made four free throws in that span. Felicia Johnson's jumper in the lane off the dribble provided her team with a 45-31 cushion with 7:39 to play.

"There was more intensity on defense (in the second half)," explained Forster, whose team had dropped three of its last four outings. "We had smart stops. There was no reaching and or letting someone dribble around us. Their turnovers help generate offense and allowed us to score in transition."

In the first half, Vermont's zone defense held the Great Danes' offense in check. UAlbany missed 21 of its opening 25 attempts and shot 23.3 percent in the period. The Catamounts were able to run off a string off 11 points to build a 22-9 advantage. Tory Dennerlein canned a three-pointer in that stretch and Lauren Wheeler's driving layup capped the run. Henry helped UAlbany cut that margin in half by the break by scoring with an inbounds pass and hitting a three-pointer from left of the key. UVM took a 27-21 lead to the intermission.

"We weren't hitting our shots against their zone," said UAlbany coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson, whose team took over fourth place in the conference standings. In the second half, we had more poise and got better looks, plus we crashed the offensive boards."

Callaway had 10 points for the Great Danes, who had not reached the win column in this series since January, 17, 2007. The Catamounts, who was last year conference championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament's second round, shot 32.6 percent and committed 23 turnovers overall.

Paw Prints: UAlbany stayed ahead of Hartford in the America East Conference standings with the comeback win against Vermont ... the Catamounts had won eight straight in the series, including a victory in last year's conference tournament quarterfinals ... Julie Forster has recorded a double-double in three of her last five games and leads the league in rebounding ... Ebone Henry has a seven-game, double-figure scoring streak ... UAlbany will host the 14th Big Purple Growl on Saturday, Feb. 5th ... the Great Danes face Hartford in the first game of a men's and women's doubleheader at 4:30 p.m. ... both contests will be televised by Time Warner Cable Sports.


Courtesy: UAlbany Sports Information