Team Effort Sends Firebirds to Dominant, 84-43 Victory on Senior Day
WASHINGTON, DC – Nine players entered the scoring column including five in double-figures as the University of the District of Columbia women's basketball team closed out is 2012-13 season with a dominant, 84-43 victory over East Coast Conference foe Mercy on Senior Day, Saturday afternoon.
The two seniors on the Firebirds squad – Ty Abilla (Mass Media – Galloway, NJ/Absegami HS) and Janelle Junior (Administration of Justice – Riverside, CA/La Sierra HS) – both made significant contributions as they played their final game at University of the District of Columbia. Junior finished with a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds while Abilla added career-highs of 12 rebounds, nine assists and seven steals. Both were honored in a pre-game ceremony.
Junior Snezana Blagojevic (Business Management – Kragujevac, Serbia/Towson Catholic HS) led all scorers with a career-high 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field (4-of-6 from long-range). Sophomore center Britenique Harrison posted her first career double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds and sophomore guard Denikka Brent (Mechanical Engineering – Chesapeake, VA/Booker T. Washington HS) added 13 points. Also, reigning ECC rookie of the week, freshman forward Tatyana Calhoun (Environmental Science – Disputanta, VA/Sussex Central HS), registered eight points and a game-high 14 rebounds.
Mercy, which made just eight field goals on the day, was led by Aysha Williams's double-double of 14 points and 10 rebounds. The Mavericks were held to 8-of-57 (14-percent) shooting from the field but made 24-of-32 (75-percent) from the free-throw line.
The Firebirds finish the season with a record of 10-18 overall and 5-13 in the ECC. Mercy finished the year 0-26 (0-18 ECC).
District of Columbia held Mercy scoreless for the first 10:33 of play and without a field goal for the first 13:21 as the Firebirds took over the game with a 33-1 advantage just past the 8-minute mark, and they never looked back. Blagojevic was 4-for-4 from the field (3-of-3 from behind-the-arc) to lead all scorers with 11 points at the break as the Firebirds soared to a 50-15 halftime lead.
Mercy never got any closer than 35 points in the second half as District of Columbia completed the season sweep with a 41-point victory.
The Firebirds out-shot the Mavericks 39-percent to 14-percent from the field and held a commanding 64-43 rebounding edge. They also out-scored their guests 36-4 in the paint and 34-15 in bench points. District of Columbia was also the much more efficient offensive team with 20 assists and 16 turnovers while Mercy handed out just three assists and committed 23 turnovers.
Head coach Lester Butler, Jr. will return 11 players from this year's roster in 2013-14.
