Women's basketball: Shazer, Cunningham shine for Marist in Doughty's head coaching debut

The emotions felt during the game weren’t all that different from the norm. In fact, Erin Doughty insisted, the only moments of nervousness came when a sizeable lead had dwindled in the fourth quarter, and that angst would’ve existed regardless of where she was positioned on the bench.

What broke that similitude, though, was her need to change clothes afterwards.

“I don’t know if they weren’t drinking at all during the game, because it seemed like all the water bottles were still full,” Doughty said with a grin. “I got drenched!”

She was greeted in the locker room by her Marist College women’s basketball team, the players giddily splashing water in celebration of the victory earned Thursday in Doughty’s head coaching debut.

The Red Foxes responded to a second-half charge and staved off Army for a 76-68 win, delighting the crowd in McCann Arena, and beginning the Doughty era on a high.

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“It meant a lot,” said junior Catie Cunningham, who had a breakout performance with 17 points, 12 rebounds and two steals. “We wanted to win for ourselves and set the tone for the season, but we also wanted to get a win for Coach Erin.”

Zaria Shazer had 21 points, eight rebounds and three blocks to lead Marist. Sophomore Jackie Piddock had a career-high 17 points with six rebounds and three steals, and Kiara Fisher had 10 points and 10 assists with only one turnover.

“A double-double on dimes is crazy,” Shazer said of Fisher, a fellow senior named to the preseason all-Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference first team. “She's finding us and putting us in good positions to score, making passes that most point guards don't.”

Doughty was tabbed the successor last year, before Brian Giorgis began his farewell season with the team, ending a decorated tenure that included 11 conference championships. Doughty had been an assistant since 2005, when she sacrificed her senior season as a player to help fill a coaching vacancy, and the former walk-on served as the associate head coach the previous five years.

In that role, Giorgis said, she was more vocal and took charge in leading practices and handled much of the recruiting. As well, players said, she built strong relationships with them and has long earned their trust.

“She’s doing a great job,” Shazer said. “People who were here were already familiar with her, and she recruited the new players, so there was already a connection. It’s been an easy transition for us. We love her.”

Doughty and Giorgis became close friends through more than 20 years spent together, and he campaigned for her to be his replacement, even acknowledging that she was better able to relate to the players.

Giorgis signed on this fall to serve on the Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament selection committee and, Doughty said, he'll very likely be watching all the games coached by his former protégés.

Cunningham said the new coach has infused “great energy,” and Piddock credited her with creating a relaxed environment.

The sideline was noticeably less formal Thursday evening. Doughty eschewed the pants suits and high heels she typically wore during games as an assistant, opting instead for sneakers. Standing and pacing the sideline more often as the head coach, she said, the low-top Air Jordan 1s were a comfort call.

Shazer had nine points in the fourth, helping Marist hold on for the win. After the Black Knights pulled within 64-62 with 2:20 remaining — prompting the aforementioned nervousness ― she scored the Red Foxes’ next four points, including a jumper on the ensuing possession.

“We haven't always come out on the right side of these types of games,” said Doughty, whose team went 20-39 the previous two seasons. “To have that third quarter where Army gave us a punch, then to punch back, that's a sign of a team that's learning how to win.”

Marist led by as many as 12 in the second quarter, but Army rallied and eventually closed within 57-56 on Fiona Hastick’s fast-break layup with 7:16 left in the fourth.

Army’s “run and jump” pressure defense contributed to Marist’s 23 turnovers, which helped the Black Knights compensate for the Red Foxes’ 10% advantage in field goal percentage. Some of the turnovers could be attributed to “first-game jitters,” Cunningham said. “I wouldn’t expect that to continue.”

What they do expect is improved passing and perimeter shooting, which were areas of emphasis in the offseason after Marist shot 27.8% from three last season. Doughty still runs the motion offense that Giorgis implemented when he took over the program in 2002, but she and her staff have made “tweaks” they hope with help create spacing.

The team going 6 for 16 from three in its opener “was big,” said Piddock, who hit 4 of 6. “Army brought a lot of pressure, so it was important for us to be able to get into the halfcourt, run our stuff and create open shots.”

Marist needs to shoot a higher volume of threes, and with better efficiency, to limit teams from clogging the paint against Shazer and Fisher, Doughty said.

Reese Ericson scored 24 points and Trinity Hardy added 17 points and four steals for the Black Knights (0-2). Marist has won seven straight against Army and improved to 8-4 overall against the Hudson Valley rival.

The Red Foxes lost their first three games last season so winning an opener does help build confidence for a team developing “a new identity,” Shazer said.

“It was great,” Doughty said of the post-game waterworks. “It's not my win; it's a Marist win. But it means the world to me that the players have our backs.”

Stephen Haynes: shaynes@poughkeepsiejournal.com, 845-437-4826, Twitter: @StephenHaynes4

This article originally appeared on Poughkeepsie Journal: Women's basketball: Doughty wins debut as Shazer stars for Marist