PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Johnson & Wales University women's basketball squad dropped an 85-73 decision against intra-state rival Roger Williams in a non-conference contest at the Harborside Recreation Center on Thursday evening.

Roger Williams freshman Elizabeth Kilzi (Waverly, Pa.) tallied 24 points and added eight rebounds while fellow rookie Alexandria Lanieri (Port Jefferson, N.Y.) recorded a double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds for the Hawks.

Leading the way for Johnson & Wales was freshman Allyson Dowen (Burlington, Vt.) with 24 points and eight rebounds while junior Morgan Wilson (LaGrangeville, N.Y.) had 13 points and five rebounds in the setback.  Senior Jeniphr Moxley (Lakewood, Wash.) and junior Katurah Andrews (Hartford, Conn.) each had 12 points for the Wildcats.

Roger Williams controlled the action early in the contest and held the 17-5 advantage on a pair of free throws by Kilzi with 14:35 left in the half.  Johnson & Wales chipped away at the lead and climbed to within seven when two free throws by Ramirez made the score 34-27 with 5:46 on the clock.  The visiting Hawks dominated the play down the stretch of the first half, out scoring JWU by a 14-5 margin to take a 48-32 lead into the locker room at halftime.  Roger Williams had a 60.6% shooting percentage from the field and out rebound JWU by a 24-16 margin in the first half.

Johnson & Wales cut the lead to just eight points on a pair of free throws by Wilson, making the score 48-40 at the 17:42 mark of the second half.  Roger Williams responded with a 17-5 run, capped by a three pointer by junior Carly Spagnola (Millbrook, N.Y.) to take their largest lead of the game, a 65-45 advantage with 11:40 remaining.  Once again, JWU chipped away at the lead and made the score 75-66 with 4:46 left on a two free throws by Dowen.  That would be as close as the Wildcats would get, however as the Hawks hit six from the charity stripe in the final three minutes of play to hang on for the 75-73 victory.

With the loss JWU is now 2-4 while Roger Williams improves to 3-4 for the season.  The Wildcats will return to action on Saturday, November 5th when they travel to Mitchell for a non-conference contest at 1:00 p.m. Roger Williams hosts Brandeis University Saturday at 3:00 p.m.

- Release courtesy of the Johnson & Wales University Sports Information Department