Posted: Feb 19, 2015
NE-10 finds some clarity but many issues remain unsettled…
- Franklin Pierce locked up the #2 seed in the NE-10 Northeast Division with an 81-71 win over division champion Stonehill in Rindge. Kara Charette (26 points, 12-13 FT) and Jessica Hurd (18 points, 6-6 FT) powered the Ravens in this one as they used a 12-0 carryover run (10-0 to start the second period) to take a lead they never lost (46-37). The Skyhawks, who had a six-game win streak snapped, jumped to an initial 18-7 lead but FPU battled back to grab its first lead with 2:59 left in the half, 34-32. Alison Palma’s basket with four seconds to go put the Ravens ahead at the break (37-36) and the run at the onset of the second half widened it. Stonehill stayed in the game but never caught up and Franklin Pierce made 15-17 at the foul line in the final 1:36 to secure the result. Kelly Martin (21 points), Tori Faieta (14 points, 7 rebounds) and Paige Marshall (13 points) topped the Skyhawk scoring but they were second-best to FPU in shooting (53%-41%) and at the line (FPU 27-31; Stonehill 11-15 FT). The Ravens have won four in a row, including quality wins over Adelphi, NYIT and Stonehill, and will host an NE-10 quarterfinal game (as will Stonehill, obviously).
- Assumption took a big step in the race for 3rd place in the NE-10 Northeast, winning at St. Michael’s, 75-54. Conversely, the defeat means the Purple Knights are now in a three-way tie with Bentley and St. Anselm for the last playoff spot in the division. The Greyhounds led at the half, 33-26, and blew the game wide open with an 18-2 eruption to kick off the second period. The ensuing 51-28 lead (14:34) was more than SMC could recover from and the result was decided. Caitlin Ackerman (15 points, 9 rebounds; 7-9 FG), Jaclyn Storey (12 points, 6 boards) and Allison Stoddard (12 points) led five AC players in double figures as they shot 48% from the field and dominated the glass (41-23). Makenzie Burud (19 points), Tomi Akinpetide (12 points) and Maggie Sabine (10 points) headed the Purple Knight effort but they shot only 39% as a unit. AC holds a one-game lead over Merrimack for 3rd place in the division with the win.
- Candace Andrews (12 points, 7 assists) hit a baseline jumper with 5.1 seconds left to lift St. Anselm to a 53-51 victory over visiting Merrimack, keeping their playoff hopes alive and well. The Hawks looked as if they wouldn’t require a game-winning basket in the early going, roaring to a 15-0 lead with less than five minutes played. Their lead crested at 31-11 (2:58) but the Warriors scored the final six points of the stanza (31-17) to keep their noses in it. MC closed the gap to 43-36 (10:11) after a 10-3 spell midway into the final frame and suddenly this was a contest. Allison Wagner (12 points, 4-7 3FG) buried a triple to draw Merrimack within 51-49 at the 3:24 mark and after a dry spell each way Ashley Weissmann tied the game with 21 ticks to go, 51-51. Andrews provided the defining shot, though, to put St. A’s back in the thick of the playoff race, tied with St. Michael’s and Bentley for the last playoff spot. Raquel Johnson (18 points, 6 boards), Caitlin Abela (10 points, 9 rebounds) and Kaila Duarte (12 boards) combined with Andrews to lead the Hawk attack while Chloe Rothman and Wagner shared the scoring lead for Merrimack (12 points). Rothman did reach a milestone, however, surpassing Christina Siragusa for the most three-pointers in program history (185). Team-wise, there was little to choose between the pair; shooting was tight (St. A’s 38%-36% FG) and neither team made much hay at the line (St. Anselm 7-13; MC 3-6 FT). Merrimack sits in 4th place in the NE-10 Northeast, a game behind Assumption and two games ahead of the 5th-place pack with two games left.
- Bentley rode a white-hot second half shooting display to dump Southern New Hampshire, 75-62, and take their place in the scrum for the final NE-10 Northeast playoff berth. The Falcons, who shot 63% overall, hit an absurd 73.9% in the final frame (17-23 FG) to pull away in the final ten minutes. The Penmen got off to the better start, however, notching the game’s first nine points. Bentley recovered and closed the first half with the final dozen points to go into the break with a 35-26 lead. SNHU chopped the lead down to 47-44 with 10:50 left but the Falcons rattled off the next nine points (56-44, 8:58), all but sealing the deal. Jen Gemma (24 points, 9-12 FG), Kelsey Mattice (15 points, 7 boards, 5-7 FG), Lauren Green (14 points, 5 assists) and Carlene Kluge (14 points, 6 boards, 7-10 FG) had hands in the win for the Falcons, who were also sharp from deep (7-12 3FG) and at the line (10-11 FT). Vic Wiseman (16 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists), Brooke Springfield (14 points) and Sara Ryan (11 points) led the Penmen offense as they shot a respectable 45% overall but had tougher times from long-range (2-14 3FG) and at the line (5-12 FT). SNHU is game behind the three-way tie for 5th place in the division at the moment with two games remaining.
- Adelphi retained its lead in the NE-10 Southwest, turning back the College of Saint Rose, 69-56. The Panthers were able to take the lead at the break thanks to a late Kelly Mannix (19 points, 7 rebounds) three-point play, 25-24, and they collected the first ten points of the second half to extend their lead to 35-24 (16:57). The Golden Knights hung in the game for much of the second period but AU put them away with a 17-4 push, making it a 64-44 game with 1:57 on the clock. Jenna Halaby (11 points) and Calli Balfour (10 points) pitched in for Adelphi, which hit 17-27 at the line and doubled-up the GK’s in turnovers (26-13, leading to a 33-20 edge in points-off-turnovers). A trio of Saint Rose players put up 11 points (Jamie Hutcheson, who nearly had a triple-double with 8 rebounds and 11 turnovers; Mariah Lesure and Keyontae Williams) and they actually out-shot (50%-48% FG) and out-rebounded (34-27) Adelphi over the course of forty minutes. The Panthers have a one-game lead in the loss column over New Haven (both will host quarterfinal games) while Saint Rose (still alive in the playoff picture) sits out of the final spot, trailing AIC by two games in the loss column.
- New Haven wiped out a 14-point deficit with 10:27 left to knock off AIC, 66-60, and win for the ninth straight time. The Yellow Jackets led 26-22 at the half and worked their edge to the aforementioned margin but the Chargers dominated the final quarter of the match, eventually taking the lead on a Bria Moore trey (13 points) with 1:40 left, 58-56. That was part of a 9-0 run that sent UNH into a 62-56 lead at :48, and they made 8-10 at the line after the Moore triple to ice the win. Aquillin Hayes (19 points, 8 rebounds), Briana Bradford (12 points) and Ashley LeBlanc (10 points, 13 caroms) added quality depth for New Haven, which overcame 1-11 three-point shooting (yes, Moore’s make was their only one) by forcing seven more turnovers (20-13). Krista Ferrentino (19 points, 13 rebounds) and Alyssa Roach (11 points) keyed the AIC effort, the latter surpassing the 1,000-point barrier in the process. AIC had the upper hand off the glass (50-41) but couldn’t get the stops they needed down the stretch. The Jackets still control their own destiny in NE-10 Southwest playoff terms (two games ahead of Saint Rose and Pace in the loss column) and are just a game behind LeMoyne for 4th place. UNH, meanwhile, has one game left, a home tilt against Adelphi which could well decide the destination of the division crown.
- Pace came up with a 61-57 win over Southern Connecticut in Pleasantville to keep their playoff hopes alive. Christina Rubin (19 points) and Margo Hackett (15 points), the latter scoring her 1,000th career point during the contest, led the Setter effort, one which sank a dozen three-pointers (12-28 3FG). Pace led 29-14 at the interval and maintained a single-digit lead for the duration. Rubin’s trey with 2:07 left pushed the home team into a 58-49 and they kept their composure to see it out and record the win. Nicole Grossbard (15 points, 7 boards), Danielle Powell (13 points), Jackie Beathea (10 points, 14 rebounds) and Taylor McLaughlin (10 points) accounted for the bulk of the Owls scoring. SCSU shot a bit better overall (35%-31%) but made only 5-17 from three-point range and just 12-21 at the line (in fairness, Pace went only 9-16 at the line themselves). SCSU holds a one-game lead over idle LeMoyne for 3rd place in the NE-10 Southwest while Pace is two games behind AIC for the final spot with two games to play.
ECC slate yields three coast-to-coast victories…
- The ECC leaders, the University of the District of Columbia, won for the eleventh time in a row, beating Dowling, 77-59, in New York. The Firebirds put five players in double figures, topped by Taj Baldwin-Kollore (14 points), Shakena Williams (12 points) and Denikka Brent (12 points, 9 boards), and led 38-28 at halftime. They sped away from the Golden Lions with a 21-4 burst midway through the second half, establishing a 68-38 lead at the 11:12 mark and rolling from there. Christine Verrelle (18 points, 9 rebounds), Krstina Surlan (17 points) and Jessica Kalbfleisch (16 points, 7 boards) scored most of the Dowling points as they lost their sixth straight game and are all but out of the ECC playoff frame. UDC shot 52% overall and put together a 22-2 bench scoring edge to help their cause. Free throws were almost extinct here (UDC 4-9; DC 0-2 FT) and turnovers were kept to a minimum (UDC +5, 17-12). The Firebirds have a two-game lead in the loss column over both Queens and idle Roberts Wesleyan atop the ECC.
- Queens climbed into 2nd place in the ECC (just ahead of Roberts Wesleyan) by dispatching NYIT, 74-61. Madison Rowland joined the 1,000-point club for the Knights with 14 points and was joined in double digits by Kristen Korzevinski (18 points, 7 assists) and MacKenzie Rowland (17 points, 10 rebounds, 5 blocked shots). Queens led all the way, scoring the final ten points of the first half to establish a 38-22 lead. They started the second half in similar fashion with a quick 9-1 run; the overall 19-1 spell handed the Knights a 47-23 lead (17:11) and while the Bears tried to get back into it, they never came closer than eleven points. Julie Williams (19 points, 6 boards, 5 steals) and Dina Ragab (14 points, 8 rebounds) supplied more than half of NYIT’s points but they were badly out-shot (52%-32%) by the Knights, a killer area. NYIT was a little better than QC at the line (17-22; QC 13-21 FT) but neither club was any good from lone-range (NYIT 2-17; Queens 1-7 3FG). With the loss the Bears fall into a tie for 4th place with LIU Post.
- LIU Post rolled over Molloy, 76-62, bombing out to a 17-2 lead with less than six minutes elapsed and never losing their grasp on the tilt. The Pioneers held a 41-32 halftime lead and saw the Lions close the gap to 50-47 (12:41) but an Ashley Castle (22 points, 4-7 3FG) trey began an 11-2 spell that put LIU Post back in control, 61-49, at the 9:18 mark. Molloy didn’t wilt yet couldn’t get back all the way and suffered a damaging blow in their hopes for an ECC playoff berth. Chelsea Williams (26 points, 11-18 FT), Nyasia Davis (11 points, 13 boards) and Quanisha Ratley (11 points) were also central to the Pioneer effort as they shot 48% from the field, hit 22-37 at the line and grabbed 14 more rebounds than Molloy (45-31). Kimani Jackson (21 points) was the sole Lion in double figures. They shot just 37% overall and although Molloy did make 15-22 at the line, it wasn’t enough. The Lions are a full game behind St. Thomas Aquinas for the last ECC playoff spot with four game left (they split the season series) while LIU Post is tied for 4th in the loop, just a game out of 2nd place.
Lightning wallop Wildcats in Delaware…
- Goldey-Beacom had four double figure scorers in their 91-67 rout of Wilmington, pulling the Lightning within one game of Holy Family for 3rd place in the CACC South with two games left (although HFU does have the tie-breaker). GBC led all the way, racing to a 52-32 halftime lead and keeping their foot on the pedal the rest of the night. Lexi Bruno (21 points, 7 boards, 6 assists), Britani Bryson (19 points), Lillian Chukwueze (16 points, 10 boards) and Reighly Melochick (12 points) fronted a GBC offense which shot a crisp 53%, hit 9-15 from three-point land and sank 18-28 from the stripe. Ebonee Dixon (16 points) and Jasmine Lee (11 points) led a strong bench effort for Wilmington (57 of their 67 points emanated from there) but they shot only 41% as a team and missed all three of the 3FG tries to fall to defeat.
NCAA D2 East Regional Poll finally out…
- The first official NCAA Division II East Regional poll was released yesterday, with games through Sunday factoring into consideration. Stonehill, Adelphi and New Haven comprise an all-NE-10 top three, while UDC and the University of the Sciences check in #4 and #5. After that, the poll has NYIT (6), Franklin Pierce (7), Philadelphia (8), Queens (9) and LIU Post (10). The current regional poll designations will be reflected in the standings with a bracket and number next to the respective team names [x].