FAIRFIELD, CT – Iona College women’s basketball senior guard Damika Martinez scored a game-high 26 points and dished out five assists in a 77-66 loss to Fairfield Thursday evening at Alumni Hall.
Martinez knocked down nine field goals, including four from behind the arc, and pushed her career scoring total to 2,369 points. She is now 98 points shy of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference scoring record; and is now 87th on the Division I all-time scoring ledger.
Junior forward Joy Adams scored 22 points and grabbed seven rebounds, while junior guard Aaliyah Robinson scored 10 points, grabbed four rebounds and finished with four assists. The trio combined for 87.9% of the team’s scoring output.
While Iona shot 49.0% (24-49) from the field to Fairfield’s 46.9% (30-64), the Stags connected on six more field goals and outscored the Maroon & Gold 44-32 in the second half.
In the contest, the Gaels turned the ball over 17 times, which the Stags turned into 20 points. Fairfield also held a 35-26 edge on the glass, and registered 21 second chance points.
At the end of a back and forth first half, Martinez’s layup with four seconds remaining gave the Gaels a 34-33 halftime lead. The Stags responded by opening the second period with a 17-8 surge, grabbing an eight point lead with 14:34 remaining.
After the Maroon & Gold trimmed the deficit to five, Fairfield answered with a 9-0 run to take a 15 point advantage, 60-45, with 10:31 left. Iona was unable to get within single digits for the duration of the contest.
Fairfield was led by 22 points from Samantha Cooper, while Casey Smith scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. The duo scored 15 points apiece in the second stanza.
Iona is back in action Saturday, when it welcomes Marist to the Hynes Center for a 4:00 pm start. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3 as part of a double header with the Iona men’s squad.