Women’s Notebook – Greyhounds sprint away with regional crown
By Stephen Zerdelian
For the first time in program history, Assumption climbed the mountain and took home the East Regional Championship on Monday in Worcester. The top seed/host recovered from a pair of slow starts in their three-game run but in the end utilized their trademark defense and received timely scoring to prevail.
Kerry Phayre’s Greyhounds, the only team to shoot over 40% from the floor in every game they played in the regional, blew out Dominican in the fourth quarter of their first-round game, led all the way in their semifinal game against Bentley, and rallied from a 13-point third period deficit to beat Jefferson, 62-57, and earn their ticket to St. Joseph, Missouri and the Elite Eight.
A full Laska Gym provided a pulsating atmosphere for their opening round game, but the Greyhounds felt the occasion and fell into a 9-0 gully off the top. CACC champion Dominican got off the fast start and, although Assumption rallied to take an 11-9 lead, this was a dead heat for more than three periods. The 8th seed scored the first basket of the fourth quarter to knot the game at 39 but Assumption exploded thereafter and went on to win, 71-49. The 32-point stanza from the Hounds featured excellent shooting (11-15 FG, 2-4 3FG and 8-9 at the line) and their usual lock-down defense (DU shot 3-18 for the quarter), allowing the Greyhounds to win a tournament contest for the first time since 2011. Molly Stokes (career-best 26 points; 10-15 FG, 3-7 3FG), Marina Callahan (13 points, 7 boards, 5 assists) and Teagan Curran (10 points) led the AU scoring with Monica Spain and Ja’Lyn Armstrong adding 15 rebounds to the cause. Chidinma Ndukauba (13 points) topped the Charger attack, but they hit only 22% from the field and were outrebounded by a 46-35 count, ending their season at 21-11.
Another raucous crowd was on hand for the Hounds semifinal clash and most went home happy as Assumption sent Bentley packing, 62-47. Flipping the script from their first-round game, Assumption ran out to a 7-0 lead and stayed ahead, although the Falcons did get within 25-19 by the interval. The Hounds slowly pushed the lead out (43-25 after three frames) and led by as many as 22 points (54-32 with 4:03 to go) as they claimed a spot in the regional title game for the first time in program annals. Armstrong (19 points, 6 boards, 4 assists, 9-13 FG) was electric and Spain (16 points, 10 boards; 6-11 FG, 2-2 3FG) efficient for the winners, who also received nice floor games from point guard Amanda Mieczkowski (8 points, 5 assists, 3 boards, 1 turnover) and Callahan (4 points, 8 rebounds). Ella Thompson (17 points) and Maggie Whitmore (8 points, 9 boards) were the top Falcon threats, but they were held to 32% from the field and outrebounded, 41-33, closing their campaign at 22-10.
Jefferson’s path to their first regional title game since 1986 (when they were part of the old East Region and advanced all the way to the Final Four) was slightly smoother than Assumption’s as the 3rd-seeded Rams dispatched Daemen (the #6 seed) and Southern New Hampshire (the #2 seed) along the way.
The Rams opened proceedings with a 74-47 victory over #6 seed, Daemen, on Friday. Wildcat Paige Emborsky hit the first basket of the game – fittingly a three-pointer, as she leads the nation in three-point percentage – but Jefferson netted the next eight points and never looked back. They held a 39-29 edge at the half and closed out the third quarter on a 12-0 binge to make it 53-35, all but sealing the result. Haley Meinel (22 points, 4 steals), Sam Yencha (12 points, 11 rebounds), Emma Kuczynski (12 points), Cassie Murphy (10 points, 13 boards) and Morgan Robinson (7 points, 10 caroms, 6 assists and 4 steals), the Rams starting five, was lively, and they helped put together an impressive assist/turnover ratio (16/8), got to the line more often (16-23 to Daemen’s 3-3) and forced 16 Wildcat turnovers. Gabby McDuffie (14 points) and Natalie Angeletti (11 points) led the Daemen scoring but they were mostly overwhelmed by the Rams and ended their season at 20-5.
Moving onto the regional semifinals, Jefferson never trailed in eliminating Southern New Hampshire, 62-49, but it wasn’t a foregone conclusion. The Rams enjoyed their largest lead with 5:33 left in the third quarter, 40-25, but the Penmen stormed back to whittle the deficit to 43-41 by the end of the frame. They were unable to totally bridge the gap, though, with an 11-2 Jefferson sortie stretching the lead to 60-47 with 2:14 left the killer blow. Meinel (24 points and a career-high 10 steals) was a menace at both ends of the floor while Yencha (13 points, 13 boards) efficiently provided another double-double. Murphy (9 points, 11 boards, 3 blocks) and Robinson (9 rebounds and 7 assists) also added to the cause as the Rams shot more free throws again (21-27; SNHU 3-3) and pilfered 15 total steals (of SNHU’s 22 turnovers). Jess Knight (17 points, 8 boards), Adriana Timberlake (10 points) and Sydney DeVries (13 rebounds) were the pick of the lot for the Penmen but aside of the run in the last half of the third quarter, they didn’t have any significant foothold. SNHU completed probably its best season ever at 22-8.
The first round went mostly according to seed with the top three seeds plus the #5 seed, Bentley, advancing. This was the first time since 2010 that the 1-2-3-5 seeds moved on in the region, but that was the last season in a six-year run (2005-2010) in which this was the case. In half of those seasons, the #1 and #3 seeds moved on to the regional final, with the #3 seed winning twice (AIC in 2006 and Franklin Pierce in 2008) and the top seed wining twice (2009, when Franklin Pierce beat Holy Family, and this year).
Southern New Hampshire rode the shooting of Timberlake (26 points; 10-18 FG, 6-11 3FG) to a 65-44 win over 6th seed St. Thomas Aquinas in their opening game, meaning the ECC was out of the tournament before the sun set on the first day. A fast 7-0 binge to open the clash staked the Penmen to a lead they never lost but the Spartans did rally to slice the arrears from 13 points to 31-28 by halftime. SNHU responded with a 7-0 run to begin the second half and kept STAC at bay the rest of the way to claim their first NCAA tournament win ever. Knight (13 points, 9 rebounds) and Ariana Koivisto (9 points, 9 boards) lent solid support for the winners, who out-shot the Spartans 43%-26% and fared better from three-point land (8-20 to STAC’s 4-24) while winning the glass, 48-39. Erin Leary (17 points, 14 rebounds) submitted a strong game for St. Thomas Aquinas, who wrapped up their campaign at 21-9.
The final game of the first day pitted a pair of Northeast-10 teams against each other in the #4-#5 duel and ended with the lower seed, Bentley, annexing a 53-39 decision over Le Moyne. The third period was the decisive one, as the Falcons out-scored the Dolphins 10-4 to snap a 26-all halftime tie, and take the lead for good, 36-30. Whitmore (16 points, 11 rebounds) and Julia Elie (12 points) topped the Falcon scoring while Lytoya Baker (12 points, 11 rebounds) led the Dolphins. Bentley shot better (33%-25%), grabbed more boards (45-37) and profited at the line (17-20; LC 4-7 FT) on the way to avenging a similar regular season setback to LC (53-38) and advanced to the second round for the first time since 2018. Le Moyne ended their season at 21-7.
It all set the stage for Monday’s championship game, another packed Laska Gym at the ready, but for the second time in three games, Assumption found themselves in a quick hole. Meinel scored the game’s first seven points and Robinson the next four, and the Hounds faced an 11-0 deficit midway through the first quarter. They didn’t score until a Curran trey with 3:02 left in the frame but that hoop ignited a run which kept the home team close. Jefferson stayed ahead, though, and toted a 32-26 lead into the half.
After swapping hoops early in the second half, the Rams extended their lead to 48-35 with 2:58 left, the last four points courtesy of a pair of Robinson baskets. The shortfall was the largest of the contest and left Assumption grasping for answers, which came in the form of defense, unsurprising for a Greyhound team that leads the nation in scoring and field goal defense.
Curran made one of her four three-pointers (two off the glass!) to spark an 8-1 surge to close the third quarter. Mieczkowski’s trey with 50 ticks left capped it and the crowd was energized. Assumption kept on grinding into the fourth period, eventually tying the score for the first time with 5:39 to go thanks to a Curran hoop. Emily Keehfuss (11 points) answered with her third trey of the game with 5:23 to play, putting the Rams ahead, 55-52, but that proved to be the last gasp for Jefferson.
Assumption scored the next ten points to go ahead for good. Two Mieczkowski field goals, the second with 3:29 to go, put the Hounds ahead, 56-55, and Stokes (12 points) sank a killer corner trey with 1:39 on the clock (59-55), inducing pandemonium. Jefferson stayed cold and single free throws from Callahan, Stokes and Spain widened the gap to 62-55 with 11 ticks left, rendering a late Robinson basket immaterial.
From the 2:58 mark of the third period until the final bucket from Robinson (1.5 ticks left), Assumption out-scored Jefferson, 27-7, restricted them to 2-14 from the floor (2-7 from three-point land) and 1-2 at the line while forcing 11 turnovers. The shutdown was fueled in part by the Hounds using a zone defense at times, a tactic they hadn’t used in more than a month according to Phayre. Whatever the source, Assumption tapped into its defensive ethos, and it carried them to the regional title.
Curran (career-best 20 points; 8-15 FG, 4-7 3FG) was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tourney while Stokes (3-5 3FG), Mieczkowski (10 points, 5 assists) and Spain (8 points, 8 boards, 7 assists) were among the best of the supporting group. Robinson (19 points, 8 assists, 6 boards), Meinel (11 points, 4 steals), Keehfuss and Yencha (9 points and a career-high 18 rebounds) topped the ticket for the Rams. Assumption shot more accurately (43%-36%), fared a lot better from three-point land (10-17; Jefferson 4-14 3FG), and got the foul line more frequently (they shot only 6-15, while the Rams made 5-7) to aid their cause. Jefferson ruled the glass (46-33), dominated in second chance scoring (23-5) and held the lead for almost 36 minutes yet still went home a stage earlier than they’d hoped. The season ended at 28-5 for the Rams, who anticipate having everyone back and will take another tilt at the regional summit next season.
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Notes…
Assumption (#7) will face Minnesota-Duluth (#2) at the Elite Eight on Monday in Missouri, the teams having been re-seeded for the national quarterfinals. The Bulldogs (30-3) represent the Northern Sun Conference, which they have won the last three seasons. UMD also mounted a furious rally at home to win their regional (Central), coming from 20 points down (47-27, early in the third quarter) to nip Missouri Southern, 77-76. The star player for the Bulldogs is one of the best players in all of Division II, 6-2 graduate student Brooke Olson, who averages 23 points (3rd best in the nation) and 7.4 rebounds a game while shooting 57% overall. Olson can also make the three-ball (55 this season) and is #2 on the all-time UMD scoring list with 2,455 points (behind only Dina Kangas, class of ’91, with 2,810 points).
While Olson is the main threat, Assumption will have to also contend with 6-0 junior Ella Gilbertson (10.1 ppg) and 5-9 junior Taya Hakamaki (9.2 ppg), parts of a deep rotation under head coach Mandy Pearson. Gilbertson’s three-pointer gave UMD the lead in their regional final with 15 seconds left while Olson (21 points, 12 boards) was the Most Outstanding Player of the weekend. The victory is the latest in a season that has seen the Bulldogs only lose once since late November, and whose three defeats are by a total of 20 points. Both teams (and six in all at the Elite Eight) are making their initial foray into the Elite Eight. The victor will face the winner of the #3-#6 game (California State-Dominquez Hills-Catawba) in the semifinals on Wednesday. The championship game will be in Dallas on April 1, in conjunction with the Division I Final Four (and the Division II final).
Much like Assumption’s roster is largely Massachusetts-based, UMD boasts eleven Minnesota natives among their 15-player roster (three from Wisconsin and the other from Illinois). As a team, UMD scores 71.2 points a game and shoots 47.8% from the floor, placing them squarely at the opposite end of the spectrum from Assumption (which allows national lows of 50.8 ppg and 32.9% from the field). It should be an interesting spectacle.
The NE10 continued their rule over the area with Assumption’s regional title success; the loop has claimed 19 regional titles since 2000, when the College of Saint Rose won it as a NYCAC representative. In that span the ECC (the latter-day NYCAC) has picked up three crowns, 2013 (Dowling), 2017 (Queens) and the pandemic-addled/asterisk-season 2021 version (Daemen). The 2020 tournament was never played, so that remains empty. The CACC hasn’t found a break-through yet, with Jefferson the fifth team to advance to a regional final from that league and lose (Holy Family in 2008, 2010 and 2012, and Sciences in 2018).
Balance has been the watchword overall in the region when it comes to champions. Over the last eight seasons (leaving out 2020), going back to 2015, there have been eight different programs represent the region at the Elite Eight (Assumption, Pace, Daemen, Saint Anselm, Stonehill, Queens, Bentley and New Haven) and in that span six other teams have appeared in a regional final and lost but haven’t won one (Jefferson, Roberts Wesleyan, Le Moyne, Sciences, Molloy, NYIT). There hasn’t been a repeat regional winner since 2011-2012 (Bentley). Among the thirteen teams which currently reside in the NE10, nine have won regional titles, the outliers being Adelphi, Le Moyne, St. Michael’s, Southern New Hampshire. Eight of the nine teams to have advanced have represented the league except for Saint Rose (as referenced earlier), which won the region as a NYCAC entity.
The Division II Conference Commissioners Association announced their regional all-stars last week with Meinel taking home Player of the Year honors. Baker, Sarah Ericson (STAC) and Timberlake were also first team selections with Felician’s Briana Lee rounding out the five player group. Second team honorees included Robinson, Knight, Ty’zhea Hawkins (Adelphi), Latavia Jackson (UDC) and Taylor Tomlinson (AIC).
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