Marielle Giroud logs second-straight double-double with 23 points and 14 rebounds

WEST HAVEN, Conn. (January 11, 2012) -- The Franklin Pierce University women's basketball team overcame a double-digit deficit in the second-half to down New Haven, 78-74, on Wednesday night at Charger Gymnasium in West Haven, Conn. The Ravens won their second straight to improve to 10-4 overall and 7-3 in the Northeast-10, while the Chargers fell to 2-12 and 2-8 in league play.

Senior co-captains Marielle Giroud (Martigny, Switzerland) and Jewel White (Worcester, Mass.) led the way for the Ravens as both logged double-doubles. Giroud pumped in a game-high 23 points on 7-of-15 shooting from the field and collected 14 rebounds, while White also nabbed the same rebound total and netted 22 points on 8-of-9 shooting. Giroud notched her second-consecutive double-double.

Sophomore guard Brittany Martelle (Brookfield, Conn.) came off the bench and had her second-straight outstanding offensive game as she dropped in four three-pointers and scored a season-high 18 points. She is averaging 17.0 points over her past two games.

New Haven had a balanced scoring attack as five Chargers scored in double-figures, including a team-high 15 points from Anh-Dao Tran. Aquillan Hayes chipped in with 14 points, while Ashley LeBlanc added 11. Rykema Stone and Monica Schacker netted 10 points apiece.

Franklin Pierce struggled shooting the ball in the first half (25 percent shooting on 10-of-40 attempts) and found itself trailing 36-28 at halftime. But the Ravens played much stronger on the offensive end in the second half and it proved to be a major factor in them pulling out the victory.

The Ravens trailed by as many as 10 points (38-28) early in the second half, but that large deficit was quickly erased with a 9-0 run, sparked by a three-pointer from sophomore guard Kate McDonald (Fall River, Mass.) and capped with six-straight points from Giroud.

New Haven responded with four-straight points to open up a 42-37 lead, but Franklin Pierce mounted another rally, this time a 12-0 surge, to take a 49-42 advantage with 13:07 remaining. White netted five points during the run, while Giroud aided it with four and Martelle capped it with a deep triple.

That three-pointer sparked Martelle and she rained in three more over the next five minutes which helped stake the Ravens to a 62-52 lead.

The momentum swings were not done and it was New Haven's turn to go on one and they did just that by scoring 12 of the game's next 13 points to retake the lead at 64-63 with 6:12 left. Schacker and Nikita Reddy each dropped in a trey to aid the rally.

White stemmed the tide with a layup at the other end of the court and Martelle followed moments later with a pair of free throws to put the Ravens back on top at 67-64 with 5:37 to go.

The teams traded baskets over the next couple of possessions, but Franklin Pierce was finally able to get some stops on the defensive end in the waning minutes which helped them build a comfortable 75-70 lead with just :15 left. Martelle made four free throws in the closing seconds to thwart any chance of a New Haven comeback and seal the win for the Ravens.

Franklin Pierce shot 48 percent (13-of-27) from the floor in the second half, including going 41 percent (5-of-12) from behind the arc. The Ravens also got the job done at the foul line by going 19-of-21 for a 91-percent clip.

The Ravens also held a 45-41 advantage on the glass for the game, while forcing UNH into 18 turnovers.

Franklin Pierce returns to action Saturday when the Ravens play host to Adelphi at 1:30 p.m. in The Fieldhouse in Rindge.

For more information on Franklin Pierce women's basketball, please visit the team's page at athletics.franklinpierce.edu(.) To follow the program even further, please visit Franklin Pierce Athletics on YouTube (www.youtube.com/FranklinPierceSports), Twitter (www.twitter.com/FPUathletics) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceAthletics).