Women's Game Recaps #67 - 2/20/18

 Women’s Game Recaps #67 – 2/20/18

• The NE10 regular season is history and the remaining questions on playoff teams and positioning in the Southwest Division have finally been sorted. A look at the seven-game slate on Tuesday reflects the action, starting with the chase for the final post season spots in said division…

• LeMoyne secured the #2 seed in the NE10 Southwest Division by beating New Haven, 63-52, in the process knocking the Chargers out of the playoff picture. The Dolphins led all the way, scoring the last eight points of the first period to establish a quick 21-6 lead. The bulge mushroomed to 37-17 by halftime, leaving UNH a (too) big hole to face. LC managed to keep their guests at bay the rest of the way with the margin staying in double digits for the duration. Joanna Dobrovosky (22 points; 9-12 FG) and Nicole Riddick (12 points, 8 caroms) led the LeMoyne effort while Micah Womack (13 points, 5 rebounds) and Brie Pergola (11 points) topped the New Haven stat line. LC was the better shooting team by a solid margin (50-36%) and canned 5-12 from three-point land while UNH missed all ten of its triples. LeMoyne will host a quarterfinal game on Sunday against St. Anselm.

• Four players in double digits proved to be the ticket for defending NE10 playoff champion Adelphi to rub out AIC, 73-61, and lock up the #4 seed in the upcoming playoffs. Simone Hobdy (15 points, 9 boards) Emily Miccile (14 points), Jess Camarda (13 points) and Niajah Morgan (12 points) provided the scoring for the Panthers but they got off to a slow start. The Yellow Jackets, behind Dana Watts (23 points, 8 rebounds) and Alyssa Guyon (19 points), grabbed a 19-10 advantage after one period, yet couldn’t hold it. AU put up a 14-2 binge to begin the second quarter and eventually held a 29-28 lead at halftime. AIC responded out of the intermission with an 11-2 spell to go back ahead, 39-34, but it was only temporary. The Panthers surged ahead for keeps with a 16-0 explosion (50-39) and led 53-46 after three periods. The Jackets didn’t have any more answers and ended their disappointing season (picked to win the Southwest Division but finished last) on a downer. Free throws were the main team stat difference (AU 24-28; AIC 17-20 FT) in a game that had five ties and six lead changes. Adelphi hosts a first round playoff game on Friday against Merrimack.

• The final game in the Southwest Division saw the College of Saint Rose beat Pace, 51-49, on the strength of Takora McIntyre’s drive with 2.6 seconds to play. The victory snapped the Golden Knights’ seven-game skid and proved to be sufficient to snare the final playoff spot in the loop. Pace, meanwhile, tossed away a chance to finish second and host a playoff game; instead they hit the road from the dreaded #3 seed. The Setters jumped to a 20-10 lead after one frame but shot blanks in the second period (1-11 FG), allowing the Golden Knights (who scored the first eleven points of the period) to seize a 25-24 halftime lead. Pace recovered and held a 42-38 edge after three quarters, teasing a nip-and-tuck last period. Ashley Vanderwall’s three-point play at the 5:04 mark tied the game at 46 for Saint Rose, who stretched the lead to 49-46 after three Karissa Birthwright (11 points, 8 boards) points. Gabriella Rubin (10 points) tied the game with a trey (49-all) as the clock showed eleven seconds, only to see McIntyre break the deadlock for good. Rubin’s three-pointer at the horn missed and all the divisional places had fallen into place. Isa Vara de rey led the winners with 14 points while Kristina Olikhver (12 points) and Jackie Dellisanti (10 rebounds) aided Pace. The Setters will travel to Bentley for a Sunday quarterfinal match while Saint Rose goes to Southern New Hampshire for a first round clash on Friday.

• NE10 Northeast Division champion and overall top seed Stonehill brushed past St. Anselm thanks to a big game from Kelly Martin (26 points) and a decisive 16-2 third period run. The Skyhawks held a slim 27-26 halftime lead but the Hawks tallied the first six points of the second half to take a 32-27 lead. That was their last one, however, as Martin notched ten points during the key blitz which eventually gave them a 43-34 lead (2:13). The visitors maintained that margin through to the end of the frame (45-36) and posted the first six points of the last period (51-36) to ice the victory, their fifteenth straight. Samantha Hyslip (13 points, 9 rebounds) and Colleen Walsh (13 points) supported Martin nicely for Stonehill while Shannon Ryan (15 points) and Ali Glennon (11 points, 7 rebounds) topped St. A’s. The Hawks earned the #3 seed in the division and visit LeMoyne on Sunday while the Skyhawks await the winner of the Adelphi/Merrimack game in the quarterfinals on the same day.

• Bentley will enter the NE10 post season on a four-game win streak after dispatching Franklin Pierce in Rindge, 65-50. Becca Musgrove (15 points, 5 boards), Monica Viapiano (13 points) and Victoria Lux (12 points, 11 rebounds) filled key roles for the Falcons, who ruled the roost at the line (22-31; FPU 10-15 FT) and off the glass (50-40). Mya Mosley tied her career-high with 22 points to lead the Ravens attack with Sophia Holmes adding 12 points. Bentley led 32-18 at the half and kept Franklin Pierce from making any kind of serious run at them in the second half and will host Pace in a quarterfinal game on Sunday. The Ravens wrapped up their campaign on a nineteen-game slide.

• Assumption may not be a playoff team but they put a pretty bow on their season with a 79-61 win over Southern New Hampshire in Worcester, their highest-scoring output of the season. Morgan O’Donnell (23 points, 6 boards; 8-13 FG, 7-8 FT), Meghan Reen (12 points) and Abby McKana (11 points) collected double digits for the Greyhounds, who built a 41-31 halftime advantage. The Penmen chipped away at the margin and were within three points multiple times in the fourth quarter but were never able to catch or overtake AC. Catherine Stinson (15 points) and Sarah Deyo (10 points) topped the SNHU scoring and they will host Saint Rose in an NE10 first round encounter on Friday. Assumption enjoyed the better shooting day (53-40%) and out-rebounded SNHU, 35-25, to close out their campaign.

• Balanced scoring was effective for Merrimack as the Warriors fended off St. Michael’s, 69-64, to prepare for the NE10 playoffs. Mayson Kimball (16 points), Karlee Alves (career-high 15 points; 7 assists, 5 rebounds), Alyssa Casey (14 points, 6 boards) and Denia Davis-Stewart (13 points, 7 boards) all played well for MC, who will visit Adelphi in a first round clash on Friday. Leah Spencer (23 points; 5-8 3FG) was productive for the Purple Knights in her last game and the guests kept MC on their toes all the way. Merrimack led 35-33 at the half after an 8-0 spree to close the stanza and opened the second half with an 11-2 burst (19-2 overall) to establish a lead they never relinquished (46-35), SMC battled back and closed the margin to 64-62 with 1:29 left but MC scored the next five points (69-62, :19) and that was that. Merrimack shot the ball much more efficiently than St. Mike’s (49-37%), offsetting SMC’s 24-15 edge in points-off-turnovers.

• Three East Regional teams appear in the top 25 of both national polls this week. In the WBCA poll, Bentley is #13, Sciences is #16 and Stonehill is #18. In the D2SIDA poll, Stonehill is #7, Sciences is #11 and Bentley is #21. The all-important official NCAA regional rankings will be released later this week.