53-percent shooting in second half and two 20-point scorers lead Penmen

Santoro totaled 13 points, five rebounds, four assists and a steal for the Skyhawks (PHOTO BY Mary Gettens)

EASTON, Mass. (January 17, 2022) – Southern New Hampshire University, among teams receiving votes in both NCAA Division II national polls last week and ranked No. 2 in this week's D2SIDA East Region poll, shot 53-percent from the floor in the second half and netted 53 points over the final 20-minutes to secure an 86-76 decision over Stonehill College in Northeast-10 Conference women's basketball action on Paula Sullivan Court at Merkert Gymnasium this afternoon. 

Leaders

Stonehill
Kayla Raymond Senior, Forward: Game-high 26 points (8-of-19, 7-for-7 FTs), including 20 after halftime, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals.
Isabella Santoro Senior, Guard: 13 points (4-for-7, 4-for-4 FTs), 5 rebounds, 4 assists and a steal.
Mia Kelly Junior, Guard: 12 points (4-for-9), 5 rebounds, 2 assists. 

Southern N.H.
Meg Knollmeyer Postgrad, Forward: 22 points (10-for-15), including 18 in the second half, 8 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists.
Gyanna Russell Postgrad, Guard: 20 points (12-for-12 FTs), 5 rebounds, 2 assists and a steal.
Karlee Ziliak Postgrad, Guard: 13 points, 2 assists, 3 steals. 

How it Happened

• Raymond scored 20 of her game-high 26 points after halftime, adding six rebounds, two assists and two steals. (PHOTO BY Saylor Murphy)

  Stonehill started quick in both the first and second quarters, opening a six-point lead (8-2), keyed by four points from Santoro, in the opening two and half minutes of the game and then grabbed an eight-point cushion (30-22) with 6:34 to play in the second after four straight from Raymond.
• SNHU recovered to grab leads in each quarter, but Stonehill was able to take the lead after each frame, including a two-point edge (35-33) at the half.
• The Penmen reclaimed the lead with a Russell jumper and Ziliak layup less than two minutes into the third quarter.
• SNHU stretched the lead to five on two occasions in the third before taking a three-point margin (55-52) into the final frame as junior Ariana Koivisto capped the frame with a three-pointer.
• Stonehill closed the gap to two on three occasions in the fourth quarter, but was unable to regain the lead as SNHU had an answer each time.
• The Skyhawks scored five straight to draw within a pair (73-71) after a Santoro layup with 2:29 remaining, but SNHU responded with a 13-2 run as the Skyhawks wouldn't score another field goal until Raymond capped the scoring on the day with a three-pointer.
• Knollmeyer sparked the game-clinching run with back-to-back baskets before Russell added a layup to stretch the lead to eight (79-71) with 1:15 to go.
• After a pair of free-throws by Raymond, SNHU closed the game out by converting all eight free-throw tries, including four from Timberlake, in the final 53-seconds.

Noteworthy

• SNHU outscored Stonehill 53-41 in the second half, shooting 52.9-percent from the floor (18-for-34), including 4-for-10 (40%) from three-point distance, compared to 41.9% (13-for-31) shooting for the Skyhawks, 4-for-13 (30.8%) from deep.
• The Penmen recorded a 23-12 advantage in points off turnovers as Stonehill committed 18, compared to 16 for SNHU.
• Raymond surpassed 20 points for the second-straight game (16^th career), posting her ninth double-figure scoring game in ten played this year (48 career).
• Raymond's 26 points give her 937 in 57 career games.
• Santoro posted her fifth double figure scoring game of the season (16 career).
• Kelly reached double-digits for the fifth time this season as well (5^th career).
• Senior Megan Hill matched her career-high with five blocked shots.

Up Next

Stonehill (5-6, 4-5 NE10) returns to action on Wednesday, when it visits Pace University, ranked No. 4 in the region, for an NE10 matchup at 5:30 p.m. The Skyhawks return to Merkert Gym on Saturday to host Southern Connecticut State University at 1:30 p.m. SNHU (10-2, 4-1 NE10) visits American International College on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.

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