Women's Game Recaps #63 - 2/14/18

 Women’s Game Recaps #63 – 2/14/18

• Valentine’s Day provided eleven games to dissect with the majority of them (seven) in the NE10. The report starts with a pair of ECC games, however, as the top two teams were both in action…

• St. Thomas Aquinas prepped for their big ECC showdown against LIU Post this weekend with an 80-62 victory over NYIT to run their winning streak to eight games. Jenna Erickson (26 points, 8 assists, 10-15 FG) and Julia Winnik (17 points) led four Spartans in double digits as they blew the game open with a 10-0 run to start the fourth period (73-54, 6:09). The Bears had hung in the game prior to that (trailing 38-31 at the half and 63-54 after three frames) but couldn’t stem the tide and saw a two-game win skein end. Maia Hood (13 points) topped the NYIT scoring. The Bears hold on fourth place in the ECC is now just one game in the loss column over Daemen while STAC is a half-game ahead of LIU Post… Speaking of LIU Post, they notched an 85-74 road win at the University of the District of Columbia to stay in lockstep with STAC and set up an ECC summit clash on Saturday that will likely determine the #1 seed. Sasha Patterson (19 points, 13 boards) and Mikaiya Moore (16 points, 6 caroms) led the troops for the Pioneers, who out-shot the Firebirds, 53-43% and kept their hosts at bay most of the night. LIU Post led by five points at the break (42-37) and after three periods (60-55) and managed to hold off any serious UDC runs down the stretch. Daeja Quick (22 points, 6 assists) and Danielle Harrington (14 points, 7 boards) keyed the UDC offense.

• Southern Connecticut has a grip on the top spot in the NE10 Southwest Division thanks to a 63-60 win against Adelphi but it wasn’t easy. The Owls trailed at the interval, 40-33, yet flipped the script in the third period by out-scoring the Panthers 17-5 (including a 10-0 run to open the frame) and led 50-45 entering the last stanza. AU fought back and closed to within 62-60 with 27 seconds left before Paige Decker (10 points, 6 boards) hit a free throw to make it 63-60. Failyn Stephens (15 points, 4-14 3FG) missed a trey at the horn for Adelphi, keeping the Panthers scrambling to secure a playoff berth. Murphy Murad (16 points, 7 boards) and Abby Hurlbert (11 points) led the SCSU scoring as they balanced off AU’s better shooting (43-35%) with ten more rebounds (43-33). Simone Hobdy (14 points, 8 caroms) and Emily Miccile (13 points, 6 boards) aided Stephens for Adelphi, who occupy fourth place in the loop. SCSU is a game-and-a-half ahead of Pace for the top spot but by just one game in the loss column… Pace’s surge continued with a 64-41 wipeout of LeMoyne in Syracuse, continuing both teams’ current streaks (Pace has won five in a row, LC has dropped their last three games) and pushing the Setters into second place over LC. Pace won all four periods, arriving at the half on top, 30-20, and steadily building their lead. Geena Rosalbo, Alexandra Monteleone (14 points each) and Kristina Olikhver (13 points) topped a balanced Pace attack as they emphatically battered the Dolphins in shooting (48-28%), three-pointers (6-1) and rebounds (39-25). McKayla Roberts (15 points) was the sole Dolphin in double digits... AIC stayed alive in the race for the last two divisional playoff spots by defeating the College of Saint Rose, 62-57, in a contest which also perpetuated current streaks for each team (AIC has won its last three games; Saint Rose has lost their last six outings). Dana Watts (23 points, 13 boards) and Alyssa Guyon (11 points) were the pick of the lot for the Yellow Jackets, who used an 11-0 first period spree to take a lead they never lost. AIC held a 53-38 edge after three periods and held firm despite a Golden Knight rally which cut the gap to 56-53 with 1:12 left. Isa Vara de rey (12 points) and Leah Dollard (10 points) led the Saint Rose scoring. The last two playoff spots in the NE10 Southwest are still up for grabs with Adelphi, Saint Rose, AIC and New Haven all within one game of each other as the season rapidly nears a close.

• NE10 Northeast Division leader Stonehill overcame a slow start to deal Merrimack a 62-51 defeat in North Easton and stretch their winning streak to thirteen games. The Warriors led 20-12 early in the second period but the Skyhawks rallied, closing the half on a 9-2 burst to take a 28-26 lead into the break. They managed the game well after that, keeping MC from putting together a substantial run. Courtney Walsh (16 points), Samantha Hyslip (15 points, 8 rebounds) and Kelly Martin (12 points, 9 boards) supplied the pop for Stonehill, which has a two-game lead over Bentley with two games left. Mayson Kimball (15 points), Lindsay Werner (12 points) and Denia Davis-Stewart (10 points, 8 boards, 7 rejections) led the way for Merrimack, who are a game behind Southern New Hampshire for fourth place… Bentley bounced St. Michael’s in Waltham, 75-63, to keep the pressure on Stonehill. Victoria Lux (15 points, 13 boards) and Becca Musgrove (12 points) sparked four double figure scorers for the Falcons, who led by eight at the half (36-28) and required an 11-0 run spanning he third and fourth periods to finally create some elbow room over the Purple Knights (68-51, 7:02, after the run). Leah Spencer (20 points) and Emily Ferreri (15 points) kept SMC in the game despite the Falcons superiority from the line (Bentley 15-18; SMC 4-6 FT), off the glass (46-35) and in bench scoring (33-17)… St. Anselm nudged in front of local rival Southern New Hampshire in the battle for third place in the division, picking up a 61-54 win over the Penmen at the SNHU (formerly Manchester) Arena. Shannon Ryan (20 points, 17 rebounds), Ali Glennon (17 points) and Clairee Putnam (15 points) did the heavy lifting for the Hawks, who held SNHU to 30% from the field. St. A’s led 32-25 at halftime and 45-39 after three frames but the Penmen battled back to within a basket (53-51) with 2:16 left. The Hawks iced the game at the line, potting the next five points there (58-51, :37) to ensure the spoils. Kylie Lorenzen (13 points) and Brianna Camara (12 points, 9 rebounds) were SNHU’s top threats on the night… Assumption surged in the second half to record a 64-42 win over Franklin Pierce with four Greyhounds ending the night with eleven or more points. The Hounds led 29-27 at the half but out-scored the Ravens in the final half, 35-15, including 12-0 (third quarter) and 14-0 (fourth period) runs to punctuate their success. Teneya McLaughlin (15 points, 7-11 FG) and Morgan O’Donnell (13 points) led the AC attack while Mya Mosley (15 points) was FPU’s best scoring option.

• The last two regular season non-league games involving regional teams were played on Wednesday with the East Regional team in each prevailing… Ilysia Lewis’ basket with 4.7 seconds left was the margin of victory for Bloomfield over Lincoln (PA), 66-64. The Bears were led on the night by Zhane Robinson (31 points, 11 boards; 11-22 FG, 2-4 3FG, 7-8 FT) and they also found a way to rally from a deficit as great as fifteen points to earn their first non-conference win of the year. The Lions (15-8) held a 43-28 advantage with 7:00 remaining in the third period before BC stirred, ending the quarter on an 18-7 run to close the margin to 50-46. A 7-0 spurt gave the Bears a 63-62 lead with 2:28 to play, only to see a Shecquan Bailey (13 points) bucket send Lincoln back ahead, 64-63, at the 2:07 mark. Lewis (13 points) dropped in a free throw to tie things at 64 (1:20) before her winning drive to the hoop in the dying embers. Michelle Fitzgerald (16 points, 9 boards) and Deedee Irwin (10 points) also had double digits for Lincoln in a losing cause while Deja McKenzie added 11 points for the Bears…   Mercy snapped an eight-game slide with an 83-56 win over the College of New Rochelle. The Division III Blue Angels (9-13) fell into an early hole against the Mavericks (38-23 at halftime) and had little to counter solid play from Mercy leaders Latisha Clark (20 points, 9 boards), Monet Keane-Dawes (19 points, 12 rebounds) and Amber Brown (14 points). Aaliyah Fields (17 points) and Caitlin Harrison (14 points) were CNR’s best scorers but free throw production (Mercy 16-21; New Rochelle 2-3 FF), among other areas, proved boons for Mercy.

• The first official NCAA Division II East Regional poll was released on Wednesday with Stonehill (#1), Sciences (#2), Bentley (#3) and St. Thomas Aquinas (#4) holding down the top four spots. Caldwell (#5), LIU Post (#6), Jefferson (#7) and Roberts Wesleyan (#8) occupy the next four spots while Southern New Hampshire (#9) and Southern Connecticut (#10) fill out the top 10.