In a game that featured six ties and 9 lead changes, the College of Staten Island Dolphins were on the receiving end of a 74-64 loss at the hands of Clarkson University, as part of championship leg play at the Rose City Tournament played at Drew University in Madison, NJ.  CSI leveled to 1-1 on the young season, while CU lifted to a perfect 2-0.

It was a game that would teeter back-and-forth all afternoon between the two sides from the opening whistle on.  CU scored the first seven points of the game, ended by an Ashley Loggins three, but CSI would battle right back for eight-straight of their own, powered by four points each from Nikki Fabozzi and Victoria Crea.  That was a sign of the way things would play out all afternoon.

CSI countered later in the frame with a 10-0 run to grab their biggest lead of the game at 19-11, a lead they would match on four other occasions of the first half, the final time on a three-ball by Megan Myhre to make it 29-21 with 57 seconds to go in the frame.  The Dolphins would up going into the lockers with a 32-27 lead.

Clarkson opened the second frame on a 12-4 run, extended to the lead on a Cara Manfredi three.  Six minutes in, Fabozzi gave CSI back the lead and that prompted the lead changing hands four times.  After a trio of ties, CSI always took back the lead, but the final time came at 4:23 via a Jacqueline Diaz jumper.  From there, Manfredi canned another three and CU’s Stephanie Grobe added a bucket.  After CSI registered, CU on three straight possessions while the Dolphins missed a three and turned the ball over, and just like that, CU had taken a commanding 69-61 lead with just 1:13 left.

A Fabozzi three with just under a minute to go gut the deficit to five, but CSI would only get off one more shot in the game, a missed lay-up, and CU was able to ice the game at the line.

CU out-shot CSI 46% to 35%, and the Dolphins struggled at the line again, connecting on just 61% while CU went 13-15 from the stripe.  Myhre led all Dolphins with 17 points, while Fabozzi ended with 15 points and 9 rebounds.  Manfredi led all scorers for CU with 21 points, while Loggins finished with 20 markers and 11 rebounds.

CSI will next tangle with New York University on Wednesday, November 19, on the road at 7pm.