Purchase, NY (February 16, 2016) – Junior Morgan McCollian recorded her 12^th double-double of the season with a career-high 33 points and 10 rebounds leading the DeSales University women's basketball team past Manhattanville College, 82-72, in MAC Freedom action on Tuesday evening.
 
The win clinches no worse than the #2 seed in next week's MAC Freedom playoffs.  DSU (18-6, 11-2 MAC Freedom) can clinch the top seed several ways the easiest of which is a win next Saturday at Eastern University.
 
McCollian shot 13-for-17 from the field and added five blocks to her total.  Sophomore Kaitlin Kelly finished with nine points and six assists and nine different Bulldogs scored in the win.
 
Ashley Franklin led the Valiants (16-7, 8-5 MAC Freedom) with 23 points and Bri Pabon and Ashley Raaf each had 16 tallies in the loss.
 
DSU started strong scoring nine of the first 11 points to take a 9-2 lead and finished the half on a 10-4 run to take an 11-point lead (38-27) into the locker rooms on a three from senior Jen Napolitano just before the halftime buzzer.
 
The Bulldogs jumped out quickly in the third quarter extending their 11-point halftime lead to 19 points (53-34) after a 15-7 run led by eight points from McCollian.  MVC slowly chipped away at the lead, trailing by 12 (57-45) at the end of the third quarter.
 
The lead was just seven at the 7:19 mark before seven straight points pushed the advantage up to 14 (66-52) with 5:50 to go.  DSU still led by 14 with 2:47 left when the Valiants scored six straight to get within eight at the 1:44 mark.
 
After a four-point play from Manhattanville Kelly knocked down two clutch free throws with 34 seconds left and after a defensive stop on the other end senior Kelly Anthony iced the win hitting four straight free throws over the final 30 seconds providing the final margin.
 
DeSales shot 55.6 percent from the field in the second-half and 46.2 percent for the game.  The Bulldogs got a huge boost from their bench out-scoring the Valiant bench, 23-9, in the game led by freshman Bridget Walsh with eight.
 
McCollians earns A.B.E. Doors and Windows Player of the Game honors scoring a career-high in the win and hitting 13-for-17 from the field.
 
The Bulldogs finish the regular season on Saturday when they travel to Eastern University for a MAC Freedom game beginning at 1:00 pm.