Posted: Feb 27, 2016
- Friday night featured the start of the post season (two NE-10 playoff games) and a pair of ECC games, both loaded with playoff implications…
- Defending Northeast-10 champion Adelphi advanced to the conference quarterfinals with a 72-65 victory at Franklin Pierce in Rindge, using balanced scoring and a strong third quarter to get the job done. The result marred a career day for Raven star Kara Charette (34 points, a personal-best; 13 boards, 11-23 FG, 12-13 FT), who was sensational at both ends. Charette was central in FPU’s solid start, as the home team led for most of the first half and arrived at the interval with a 31-24 edge. The Panthers, paced by Sierra Clark (15 points, all in the second half; 8 boards), ripped off a 12-2 burst to begin the third period to grab a 36-33 lead. By the end of the frame AU had a 52-47 lead but Franklin Pierce fought back. The final tie of the game (which featured seven ties and five lead swaps) came at the 5:48 mark of the last period, 57-57, after a Charette three-point play. Clark and Calli Balfour (14 points, 8 caroms) scored to push Adelphi ahead (61-57, 4:21) and with the tally 63-61, they combined for six more points (four by Clark at the line) to extend the gap to 69-61 with 1:03 remaining. The last gasp for FPU came via Dyamond Gardner, who notched the next four points (69-65, :34) but that was as close as it got. Tara Flynn (12 points) and Ashley Gomez (10 points) added quality depth for the Panthers as they scored 48 second half points. For the Ravens, only Jemma Thacker (11 points, 7 rebounds) joined Charette in double digits. Both teams fared well at the line (AU 22-30; FPU 25-29) in a hard-fought contest. Adelphi moves on to the quarterfinals, where they visit AIC in a reprise of last year’s title game on Sunday (albeit a different venue).
- Stonehill was also a road winner in the Northeat-10 tourney, eliminating LeMoyne in Syracuse, 56-51. The Skyhawks took the lead for good at the end of the first quarter (13-11) and built on in in the second period, using a 12-0 burst (with five different scorers) to go into the half with a 32-20 advantage. A low-scoring third period saw the guests lead at the end, 40-29, and they pushed it to 47-34 with 5:23 left. Finally the Dolphins rallied, with Vandell Andrade (21 points, 6 boards) scoring eight points in succession to bring LC within 47-42 (1:43). Stonehill was able to squelch the rally at that point, basically trading scores thereafter to ensure the win. Paige Marshall (18 points, 7-10 FG) and Kelly Martin (10 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds) led the effort for the Skyhawks as they out-shot LC (48%-32%) and made more of an impact at the line (13-16; LC 6-11 FT). Melanie Quijano (17 points) gave Andrade help for the Dolphins but the rest of the team collected just 14 points on 5-28 field goal shooting. Stonehill visits Bentley in the NE-10 quarterfinals on Sunday in yet another chapter of their storied rivalry.
- Madison Rowland (29 points, 13 boards), MacKenzie Rowland (13 points, 15 boards, 8 assists) and Kristen Korzevinski (13 points) starred as Queens smashed Roberts Wesleyan at Fitzgerald Gym, 72-49, to create a three-way tie for second place in the ECC (along with idle UDC). The Knights held a relatively modest 34-27 halftime edge but blew the game open in the third period, out-scoring the Redhawks 22-6 to make it a 56-33 laugher. RWC had few answers and shot only 29% on the day, rendering any comeback hopes futile. Samantha Courtney led the guests with 12 points and 9 rebounds but they were overrun in the third period and had a three-game win streak snapped. The Knights shot 45%, dominated the glass (54-36), ruled in the paint (40-16) and out-scored RWC in points-off-turnovers, 22-4, to punctuate a superb performance and extend their winning skein to five games. All three teams locked in the tie for second place have their final regular season game this weekend, so the ECC tournament seeds (and second place bye) will be determined once the dust settles.
- Molloy clinched a spot in the ECC playoffs and sent Daemen packing with a hotly-contested 63-57 decision in Rockville Centre. In a game full of back-and-forth (six ties, seven lead changes) the Lions came up trumps with a 9-2 spurt in the fourth period, flipping a 50-49 deficit (3:21) into a 58-52 lead (:39) thanks to four different scorers. The Wildcats cut the gap to 58-55 after a Sarah Saba (23 points, 9 rebounds) three-point play with 32 ticks left but the Lions canned 5-6 at the line thereafter to secure the win and the playoff berth. Molloy led 23-22 at the break but Daemen ended the half on an 11-3 run to signify the tenor of the second half. The Wildcats led 36-31 with 4:00 left in the third quarter when Molloy scored the final nine points of the frame to go back ahead, 40-36. Daemen’s final lead came via a pair of Leah McDonell (11 points) foul shots (50-49, 3:21) and although they battled, the Lions had the last word. Aaliyah McDonald (15 points, 6 boards, 5 steals), Brianna Perlmutter (11 points, 15 rebounds), Kimani Jackson (11 points) and Ally Leftridge (10 points, 6 caroms) spread the wealth for the Lions while Natalie Galus (11 points) added depth for Daemen. The key team stat was turnovers, where Molloy forced eleven more (23-12) and profited to the tune of a 15-6 edge in points-off-mistakes. The Lions and St. Thomas Aquinas will be the #5-#6 ECC tourney seeds in some order and will hit the road for first round playoff games on Wednesday, opponents and venues to be decided.