Tartans Falter on Road to #10 NYU

(BROOKLYN, N.Y.) - The Carnegie Mellon University women's basketball team saw it's three-game winning streak snapped on the road against 10th-ranked New York University on Sunday afternoon by a 79-58 score. The Tartans are now 8-4 overall and 2-1 in the University Athletic Association (UAA) while NYU moves to 12-0 and 3-0.

The Tartans stayed with the Violets through the first period, trailing 18-14, after each team made seven baskets. Two of NYU's hoops were three-pointers and they forced the Tartans into seven first-quarter turnovers for eight points.

Freshman Catherine Or (Los Angeles, Calif. / Marlborough School) led the Tartans with 13 points and eight rebounds, hitting 5-of-8 from the field with three assists and two steals. Six of her points came in the first quarter while freshman Anisha Chintala (Austin, Texas / Westwood) also scored six points in the first frame.

Six turnovers by the Tartans in the second quarter led to nine points for the Violets who pushed their lead to as many as 15 late in the quarter while the Tartans shot just 23.1% from the floor with three made baskets.

The Violets, who leads the league in three-point percentage at 35.9% for the season, finished 6-for-18 for 33.3% and outscored the Tartans in the paint, 52-30. It marked just the second game this season the Tartans have been outscored in the paint.

Both teams started slow in the third quarter with the first point coming on a free throw by NYU after nearly two minutes of action passed. It was a back-and-forth quarter with the Tartans only cutting the deficit by one point to trail 55-43 heading into the final period.

A three-pointer by senior Leah Weslock (Howell, Mich. / Howell) right off the fourth-quarter whistle made it a nine-point game but an 8-2 run by the Violets pushed the difference to 15 points. NYU was able to increase its lead to 20 points with 3:10 to go before fnishing with the 79-58 win.

The Tartans will return home for four UAA contests, starting with the University of Rochester (10-4, 2-1) at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, January 21.