Walter Peters

Ann Rosenthal

By DOUG PAPE dpape@leader.net
 Sunday, January 13, 2002 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 4C 





SCRANTON - The John J. Long Center was definitely a place where the
undefeated King's College women's basketball team could stumble. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Through the years, the University of Scranton hasn't lost many games on its
home court. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Early on in Saturday's Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom Conference tilt,
the Lady Royals seemed unbeatable with a 15-0 run to start the game. The Lady
Monarchs rallied, though, and thanks to the stellar play of Nikki Kingston,
and others down the stretch, came back for a 61-50 victory. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 King's, ranked fourth nationally by d3hoops.com and the USA
Today/ESPN/Women's Basketball Coaches Association Division III polls,
continued its best start in school history. The Lady Monarchs (13-0 overall,
4-0 in the Freedom) also have the school's longest consecutive win streak. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Besides not scoring a basket for the first 9:45 of the game, King's
committed 11 turnovers, helping in the 15-point deficit. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``We just weren't ready to play when we came out,'' said Kingston, who
finished with 17 points, including 7-for-7 from the free throw line, 10
rebounds and four assists. ``I guess they were more fired up in the beginning.
They had more intensity than we did in the beginning, but we got it back in
the second half.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 King's battled back with a 12-0 run as Fran Monte and Kingston combined for
eight points. Scranton (11-3, 3-1) held on to a 22-18 lead with less than
three minutes left in the first half. Seven consecutive points gave the Lady
Royals a 29-18 halftime advantage. Scranton's Kate Pierangeli scored 10 of her
team-high 22 points in the first. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Scranton led by as many as 14 to start the second half, but the game
tightened down the stretch as King's refused to be put away. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``I thought King's did a very effective job of maintaining their composure
in the second half and running their offense,'' said Scranton coach Mike
Strong. ``They isolated our guards, they used their post people very
effectively and they shut us down offensively.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 With 4:06 left, freshman guard Lauren Bonanni completed a three-point play
to give King's its first lead of the afternoon, 49-47. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``Lauren Bonanni may have been the difference in the game,'' said King's
coach Bryan Whitten. ``Lauren played good defense and she got us going on
offense and she made some nice passes.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Lady Monarchs followed with a 5-0 spurt as Kingston sank two free
throws and nailed a running jump shot in the lane. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Carissa Ryan, who finished with 11 points for King's, drained six
consecutive free throws to seal the game. Jen Wozniak played well with 10
points off the bench. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 ``Wozniak has just worked so hard to get where she's at,'' Whitten said.
``We call her instant offense. She has a knack for putting the ball in the
basket.'' &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 King's now sits in an advantageous position in the Freedom after taking
care of business on the road. It defeated league power DeSales earlier in the
season and now Scranton. Both schools will have to visit Scandlon Gymnasium in
upcoming weeks in the hopes of getting revenge. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Ironically, King's - last season's Freedom champion - was picked to finish
third in the league behind DeSales and Scranton. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Doug Pape, a Times Leader sports writer, can be reached at 829-7227. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

2nd-half Surge Keeps King's Unbeaten 
The Monarch Women Survive A Horrendous First Half In Downing The University Of
Scranton And Improving Their Record To 13-0.

2nd-half Surge Keeps King's Unbeaten The Monarch Women Survive A Horrendous First Half In Downing The University Of Scranton And Improving Their Record To 13-0.