Montclair, NJ (11/25/07) –Sophomore forward CATHERINE CRISTINO (Farmingdale, NJ/Colt Neck) scored 22 points and pulled down eight rebounds while junior MARIANNE MCGOVERN (Fair Lawn, NJ / Paramus Catholic) added 18 points as Montclair State posted it second straight win with a 74-71 victory over Union College in the Red Hawk-Pioneer Classic at Panzer Gymnasium on Sunday afternoon.

Sophomore guard JACKIE BERRY (Tuckerton, NJ / Pinelands Regional) added 12 points, six rebounds and seven assists off the bench as she claimed Most Valuable Player honors in helping Montclair State improve to 3-1 on the season. Union (1-1) junior guard Maria Tobin (Schenectady, NY/Bishop Maginn) had 23 points while Michelle Rogers (Clarence, NY/Clarence) posted a double-double with 18 points and 14 rebounds as each were named to the All-Tournament Team along with Berry, McGovern, Asia Johnson (Wildwood, NJ / Wildwood) of William Paterson and Stephanie Bates (Philadelphia, PA / Little Flower) of Arcadia University.

A 20-3 run to close out the first half gave Union a 36-27 lead at the break, but Montclair State  quickly closed the gap with a 12-2 run in the first three minutes capped off by a Cristino three-pointer from the right side that knotted the contest at 38-38. From there the two teams would forge six lead changes and nine ties in the contest, the final coming at 63-63 with 4:30 remaining as Rogers scored on a layup.

But Montclair would embark on a decisive 8-0 run with four minutes left in the game to take a 71-63 lead with 1:47 left. Cristino gave the Red Hawks the lead for good with a jumper and Jessica  Garrabrant (Denville, NJ / Morris Knolls) finished off a break to make the score 67-63 with 3:31 left. Senior guard JESSICA HORAN (West Haverstraw, NY / North Rockland) added two free throws and McGovern slashed through the lane for a layup to cap the run as Montclair led by eight.

The Dutchwomen did not go away as Tobin drained a three pointer with 1:34 left to trim the lead to five and then scored on a layup with 26 seconds remaining to make it 71-68. Berry responded with two free throws to boost the lead back to five with 11 ticks to go however Tobin answered again with another three, trimming the lead to 73-71 with eight seconds to play. McGovern was fouled with six seconds and hit the first free throw. Her second attempt missed, but Berry was there to grab the offensive rebound as Montclair ran out the clock to secure the victory.

Garrabrant finished with a double-double of 11 points and 13 rebounds as Montclair State also got eight points and six boards from sophomore guard KISANDRA AYANBEKU (Burlington, MA / Randolph). The Red Hawks shot 51 percent (16-of-31) in the second half, including 3-of-5 from three points range as they finished 6-of-12 from behind the arc in the contest. MSU also went 22-of-29 (71 percent) at the foul line, including 7-of-7 from Cristino and 8-of-10 by Berry.

Senior forward Devon Ciliberto (New Paltz, NY / New Paltz) had 12 rebounds to go along with six points for the Dutchwomen, who shot 41 percent (28-of-67) from the field in the game and 7-of-14 at the foul line.

Montclair State returns to action on Tuesday, November 27 as the Red Hawks host Mt. St. Mary (NY) at Panzer Gymnasium beginning at 7:00 pm.