NORTH CANTON, Ohio – Isabella Pitta's putback with 10 seconds left lifted Roosevelt to a 61-60 win over Walsh on Saturday afternoon in Ohio.
Pitta's layup was the culmination of an intense final minute or so for the Lakers (1-3) as they attempted to pull out their first win of the season. Walsh made a layup with 42 seconds remaining off an offensive rebound then Isabel Lindo got a floater to go off the backboard. Roosevelt fouled with 28 seconds left and the Cavaliers missed both free throws in the bonus.
The Lakers drew up a play for Kelly Boyle to get an open 3-point look, but her shot hit the rim and bounced right to Marie Outlay. The junior's attempt missed to the left where Pitta was able to corral the ball and hit the contested layup. Walsh had one last chance, but its 3-pointer rimmed out and Aubrey Leonard grabbed the loose ball to seal the win.
It was a tight contest for the entire 40 minutes as neither team led by more than six points in the game. The lead changed hands 14 times in the game with six of those coming in the back-and-forth fourth quarter. Lindo scored all nine of her points in the fourth quarter, accounting for four of the five shots Roosevelt made over the final 10 minutes.
Roosevelt took control of the game in the second quarter by limiting Walsh to just 2 of 14 from the field in those 10 minutes. Outlay scored seven points and added five rebounds in the second quarter to lead the Lakers to a five-point lead at halftime. Pitta and Boyle both had six points in the first half to aid in the offensive effort.
Outlay was feeling confident on the perimeter in the third quarter, scoring nine points on 3 of 4 shooting from 3-point range. Boyle added a pair of 3s of her own to keep the Lakers in front heading into the fourth quarter. However, the Cavaliers came charging back to take the lead three minutes into the fourth and put the pressure on the Lakers.
Lindo hit a 3-pointer with 4:51 left in the fourth quarter that put the Lakers up 54-52, but it started an unfortunate drought as well. Roosevelt missed its next four shots and committed one turnover over the next four minutes with three Pitta free throws keeping the Lakers in the game.
Pitta finished the game with a career-high 15 points and added 10 rebounds for her first collegiate double-double. Outlay led the Lakers with 20 points and 11 rebounds, her fourth career 20-point game, and also added five more steals to her season total. Boyle had 12 points on 4 of 7 from behind the arc, improving her 3-point shooting percentage to 41.7 percent this season.
UP NEXT: Roosevelt heads to Kalamazoo, Mich. on Tuesday for an exhibition game against Western Michigan at 5 p.m.
