Rams Close Out Regular Season with Win at Mount Saint Mary

Farmingdale State - 91, Mount Saint Mary - 71

Newburgh, N.Y. - Farmingdale junior guard Shahee Martin (Queens, N.Y./West Hempstead) racked up a game-high 32 points to lead the Rams past Mount Saint Mary College, 91-71, in Skyline Conference action on Saturday. Farmingdale State improved to 13-12 overall (13-7 Skyline) while dropping the Knights to 10-15 (9-11 Skyline).

Farmingdale led by as many as ten in the first half, but the Knights closed the half on a 4-0 run to make it 46-40 at the break. Junior Tim Morris (Greenwich, N.Y./Greenwich) drained a pair of free throws with 38 seconds remaining and then sophomore Carlos Valdez (Slate Hill, N.Y./Minisink Valley) put home a layup with just one second showing on the clock to make it a six-point game.

The Mount continued their strong play out of the gates in the second half, as a three-pointer from freshman Lenny Ragaglia (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's Boys) brought them to within four at 18:37. Valdez banked home a feed from junior Matt Weinberger (Washingtonville, N.Y.) to cut the deficit to two, and after a stop at the other end, Morris finished off a feed from Weinberger to tie the game at 48-48.

Farmingdale senior Terrence Howard (Queens, N.Y./Cardozo) scored on the ensuing possession and then it was Mount freshman Dylan McCann (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's Boys) who missed a triple that would have given the Knights the lead. From there, the Rams would score 11 of the next 15 points to seize a 61-52 advantage with 13:19 remaining.

Mount Saint Mary would close to within seven on a pair of occasions, but were never able to threaten again. The Rams extended their lead for the rest of the way and a three-pointer by Howard made the final margin, 91-71.

Martin was unstoppable at the offensive end, shooting 10-of-18 from the floor and 4-of-9 from downtown. The junior also collected 6 rebounds and dished out 5 assists. Howard was the next high man for the Rams, tallying 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting. Junior Alvin Dennis (Bellport, N.Y./Bellport) also reached double figures with 12.

Valdez led the Knights with 19 points and 13 rebounds. Sophomore Kevin Milella (Floral Park, N.Y./Kellenberg) played hard once again, and finished with 18 points and 8 boards. Morris had a nice game as well, totaling 14 points.

It was a hot shooting day for the Rams who finished at 56.9-percent for the contest. They also drained 9-of-15 from three-point range (60.0-percent). The numbers weren't so appealing for the Mount – the Knights shot 36.4-percent from the field and 3-for-20 from three.

Farmingdale advances to the Skyline Conference tournament and will take on Maritime College in a quarterfinal game on Tuesday. The Knights finish at 10-15.

Story courtesy of Justin Satkowski at Mount Saint Mary College

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