The Iona College Women’s basketball team continued their conference play against the Rider Broncs on Friday, Jan. 21 at the Hynes Athletics Center.

The Gaels got their second conference win by blowing out the Broncs with a 92-61 victory. Junior Tomica Bacic led both teams with an impressive 22 point performance as well as contributing 9 rebounds.

 “I was extremely pleased with how Tomica played,” said Head Coach Anthony Bozzella. “She can be one of the elite players in the conference if she continues to show the confidence she showed against Rider.”

Bacic was one of four Gaels that scored in double figures. Seniors Marissa Flagg and Anda Ivkovic also played a big role in the win.

 Flagg scored 11 points and Ivkovic added 10 points. Junior Milica Paligoric was great as well contributing 10 points and seven rebounds in just 13 minutes of play.

The Gaels shot well against the Broncs, having a field goal percentage of 52% for the game while also shooting over 82% from the free throw line.

  It was a great team win for the Gaels. They had 11 players score for them Friday, and they all worked hard to pull out the win.

“I think that the key to the game was our defense. I was really excited to see how well we played on the defensive end,” Bozzella said. “Defense has been the key to the success that Iona Women’s basketball has had over the last five years.”

 The Gaels ended the week on a high note by defeating the Canisius Golden Griffins on Sunday, Jan. 23.

The Gaels led the entire game, getting off to a quick start with a 19-0 scoring run. With a commanding 40-22 lead at halftime, the Gaels did not let up, winning the game 73-58, improving their conference record to 3-5.

Junior Kristina Ford led both teams in scoring and rebounding. Ford had 18 points and 8 rebounds.

Bacic also had another great game by contributing 15 points and 6 rebounds. As a team, Iona shot well with a 46% field goal percentage.

Just like their game against Rider, the Gaels had 11 different players score.

The key to the game was that Iona forced Canisius to commit 25 turnovers. With those 25 turnovers, the Gaels were able to produce 39 points. They also had an impressive 30 points in the paint.

The Gaels’ next game is against the Siena Saints in Loudonville, N.Y, on Fri., Jan. 28. The next home game at the Hynes Athletics Center for the girls will be on Sun., Jan. 30, when they take on the Peahens of St. Peters.

The two game win-streak is exactly what the Gaels are in need of coming to the middle of the season. Thus far the Gaels have been inconsistent, but maybe they have found their game with the hardest stretch coming.

The Gaels’ record now stands at 7-13 overall and all that remains is conference competition. Ford and Ivkovic have done a nice job leading the team in scoring. Ford is averaging 11.4 points per game, while Ivkovic is averaging a very similar 11.2 points per game.

Ford has also been a force on the glass leading the team in rebounds averaging 5.7 boards per game. Flagg has also done a nice job of distributing the ball at the point. She leads the team in assists with 46 while also while also coming in the top five in team scoring with 6.7 points per game.

The Gaels have also been a force at home with a record of 5-2. They have struggled on the road putting up a record of 2-9. They also finished non-conference play with a record of 4-8, which they completed early on in the season.