Montclair, NJ… The College of New Jersey women's basketball team saw its modest four-game winning streak come to an end in the season finale on Wednesday as ninth-ranked and undefeated Montclair State University posted a 76-47 victory.
 
The Red Hawks (25-0, 16-0 NJAC) will enter the upcoming New Jersey Athletic Conference Tournament as the top seed. William Paterson University (19-6, 12-4 NJAC) is seeded second and along with MSU earned a bye in the opening round of the tournament.
 
The Lions (17-8, 11-5 NJAC) finished third and will host sixth-seeded Richard Stockton College (12-12, 7-9 NJAC) on Saturday, February 16 at 4 p.m. in Packer Hall. The other quarterfinal contest has fourth-seeded Rutgers-Newark (17-8, 10-6 NJAC) playing host to fifth-seeded Ramapo College (17-8, 10-6 NJAC).
 
The winners of Saturday's games will advance to the semifinals set for Wednesday, February 20 with the top two seeds serving as the hosts.
 
TCNJ took an early lead against the Red Hawks after the hosts scored the game's initial basket. Junior Kelly Roddy (Belmar, NJ/St. Rose) knocked down a 3-pointer and minutes later the game was tied at 8-8 following a lay-up by Kylie O'Donnell (Magnolia, NJ/Sterling).
 
From that point, MSU began to pull away starting with a 15-2 run increasing their lead to 23-10. The Red Hawks added to that advantage before taking a 36-24 edge into the half.
 
A 9-0 run to start the second half by the hosts bumped their advantage to 45-24 and they never looked back finishing off their perfect regular season with the win.
 
O'Donnell paced the Lions with 13 points, while sophomore Kelly Coughlin (Trumbull, CT/Trumbull) chipped in with 10 points and six rebounds.