ATLANTIC CITY, NJ (Mar. 11, 2025) – The 2025 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Women’s Basketball Championship at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall began on Tuesday afternoon with first round action. No. 8 Manhattan University and No. 10 Iona University earned wins in the first round and advance to the quarterfinal round tomorrow.
 
No. 8 Manhattan – 52 | No. 9 Canisius – 42
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ
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In game one of the first round, Manhattan defeated Canisius, 52-42. The Jaspers dominated from the second quarter on, outscoring the Golden Griffins, 42-29 over the game’s final 30 minutes of action. Manhattan opened up the contests by way of a 20-6 run in the second quarter, which was spearheaded by the Jaspers defense, which forced the Griffs into five turnovers, leading to six points off of those turnovers for Manhattan.
 
Manhattan Notes and Notables

• The Jaspers defense caused 15 turnovers, made eight steals, and blocked 10 shots.
• The team converted the 15 turnovers into 13 points.
• Two Jaspers scored in double figures, led by a team-high 11 points from Nitzan Amar and 10 points from Kristina Juric.
• Amar finished 3-for-4 from the charity stripe and added a team-high five assists and three rebounds.
• Juric was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field and she pulled down a team-leading seven rebounds.
• Just shy of double digits was Ines Gimenez Monserrat, who’s day ended with nine points.
• On the defensive side of the court, Leyla Ozturk set a new MAAC championship individual game record, blocking eight shots.
• She broke the previous mark of seven, which was done three-times previous, most recently in 2009 by Stephanie Geehan of Fairfield.
• Manhattan finished with 30 points in the paint and 14 bench points.
• In total, the Jaspers led for exactly 30 minutes compared to 07:17 by the Griffs.
• Manhattan will be making its eighth straight appearance in the quarters dating back to the 2017 championship.
• Manhattan will meet top-overall seed Fairfield tomorrow at 12:00 p.m.

 
Canisius Notes and Notables

• The Griffs were led by Shariah Gailes, who matched the game-high of 11 points, with three rebounds, and one steal.
• Yasmine Djibril finished with eight points, four rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
• Canisius’ bench outscored Manhattan’s (19-14) and the Griffs added 11 points off of turnovers, five second chance points, and five fast break points.

 
No. 10 Iona – 42 | No. 7 Saint Peter’s – 40
Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ
Box Score (XML)
Box Score (PDF)
 
Iona edged Saint Peter’s, 42-40, using a pair of late game stops to earn the upset victory. With less than two minutes to play in the contest and with the game knotted at 40 apiece, Iona’s Zoey Ward powered her way to a second chance layup following an offensive board, giving the Gaels a two-point lead. Down the final stretch, Saint Peter’s Fatmata Janneh was called for a travel with 10 seconds to go, but the Peacocks would respond by forcing Iona into a five second violation on the ensuing inbound. On the final possession, De’Naya Rippey would get fouled in the act of shooting, sending her to the line with a chance to tie the game, but she came up just short, missing the front end of the two free throws, followed by an intentional miss on the backend, resulting in an offensive rebound by Janneh who missed the putback layup at the horn.
 
Iona Notes and Notables

• Erin Leary was the leading scorer for the Gaels, ending the meeting with 11 points, four rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
• Judith Gomez was also in double figures for Iona, scoring 10 points, with five rebounds, two steals, and a block.
• The game’s hero, Ward, pulled down a game-high 12 rebounds, while adding four points, two assists, and three steals.
• Leading the Gaels in assists was Mya Zaccagnini who dished out four and chipped in with eight points.
• Iona won the battle in the paint, outrebounding the Peacocks, 43-37 and holding an advantage in paint points, 16-14.
• The Gaels also added 13 bench points.
• Iona advances to the next round for the first time in two years since 2023 when the team won the MAAC title.
• Iona will take on No. 2 Quinnipiac at 2:30 p.m. in the quarters tomorrow.

 
Saint Peter’s Notes and Notables

• The Peacocks were led by the duo of Janneh and Rippey.
• Janneh, the MAACs leading rebounder and leader in double-doubles during the regular season, added her 19^th double-double of the season, compiling game-highs of 17 points and 17 rebounds.
• Additionally, she added three assists, three blocks, and a pair of steals to stuff the stat sheet.
• Rippey’s stat line concluded with 11 points, five rebounds, and three assists.

 
For all information regarding the 2025 MAAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships, please visit MAACSports.com/basketball and by following @MAACHoops and #MAACHoops on Twitter.
 
About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:
With 13 institutions strongly bound by the sound principles of quality and integrity in academics and excellence in athletics, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) is in its 44th year of competition during the 2024-25 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius University, Fairfield University, Iona University, Manhattan University, Marist University, Merrimack College, Mount St. Mary’s University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Sacred Heart University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena College.
 
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