Posted: Mar 10, 2018
Women’s Game Recaps #77 – 3/9/18
- The first round of the NCAA tournament took place on Friday in North Easton, Massachusetts and for only the third time in the sixteen-year current format (64 teams), all four top seeds advanced to the second round in the East Regional. Let’s go chronologically through the first round of play at Merkert Gym…
- For the second straight season the University of the Sciences grabbed a first round win, eliminating LIU Post, 61-50. This one was fairly tight all the way but a balanced Devils attack and a couple of key runs turned the tide in their favor. Sciences, now with a program-record 29 wins, took the lead for keeps with an 11-0 binge in the second period which was ignited by a Jordan Vitelli (21 points; 7-10 FG, 3-6 3FG) three-pointer. The resulting 29-22 lead (5:06) was whittled down to 32-31 by the half, in large part thanks to the Pioneers only double digit scorer, Sasha Patterson (20 points, 13 boards; 7-12FG, 6-8 FT). Sciences notched the first seven points of the second half to push the edge to 38-31 and, after LIU Post drew within 48-46 with 8:18 to go, an 8-0 spree featuring a trey from Vitelli to cap it made it a 56-46 game with 3:08 left. The #3 seed Devils saw it out from there to secure their spot in the round of 32. Alex Thomas (11 points), Sarah Abbonizio (10 points, 7 rebounds) and Irisa Ye (9 points, 5 caroms) also helped the Devils cause as they shot 50% overall and won the paint, 30-18. The 6th-seeded Pioneers, who end 22-8, shot just 32% and had issues from the line (12-20 FT) and from long-range (4-21 3FG).
- The closest game of the day was the second one as #2 seed Bentley rallied from a six-point deficit with 7:43 left to knock off 7th-seeded Jefferson, 71-66. The Falcons used a 13-2 first half burst to help craft a 39-29 halftime lead but the Rams reversed the tide by scoring the first six points after the restart. Eventually Jefferson put together an 11-0 run spanning the third and fourth periods to take a 57-51 lead early in the last frame. Five different players scored in the run for the Rams but they saw Bentley answer with a 9-3 spell to tie it at 60 (3:16), the response completed by a Lauren Green triple. Beverly Kum (15 points) sank a pair of free throws with 3:06 left to give Jefferson its final lead (62-60) but three points each from Meghan Lewis (18 points, 6 boards, 4 assists; 7-9 FG, 2-4 3FG) and Becca Musgrove (8 points, 5 helpers) gave Bentley a 66-62 advantage with 1:35 to go. Jefferson cut the Falcons lead to two points twice after that and had the chance to tie in the dying seconds but Caitlyn Cunningham missed a three-pointer with 10 seconds left that would have tied the game at 69. Macchi Smith sank two foul shots with 6.9 ticks left to wrap up Bentley’s 28th win of the season. Victoria Lux (20 points, 12 rebounds) was a force for Bentley inside and they hammered Jefferson in bench points, 27-2. Erin Maher (16 points, 4-10 3FG), Jessica Kaminski (14 points, 8 caroms, 4 assists) and Alynna Williams (11 points, 4 steals) were central to the Rams effort but they came up just short and end the season at 26-6. Bentley was more effective at the stripe (12-16; Jefferson 9-19 FT), making amends for the Rams better ball-handling (19-9 in turnovers, leading to a 21-7 Jefferson plus in points-off-turnovers). Bentley faces Sciences in the round of 32, a rematch of their first round meeting last March, which was won by the Devils.
- Top seed and host Stonehill shrugged of a slow start to blitz #8 seed Southern Connecticut and move on to the next round, 70-45. The Owls scored the first five points but a 12-2 counter put the Skyhawks ahead to stay. The home team created some elbow room with an 11-0 sortie to start the second period (24-12) and the margin stayed in double digits the rest of the way. Stonehill led 32-18 at the break and by a 50-27 tally before a 9-0 SCSU rally trimmed it to 50-36 early in the fourth period. That was as close as it got, however, as the Skyhawks pulled away down the stretch. Kelly Martin (16 points, 9 boards, 4 assists) and Maty Diabate (season-high 13 points; 6 boards, 6-7 FG) led the Stonehill scoring with four others adding at least six points. Only Kiana Stienauer (12 points, 11 rebounds) broke into double digits for the Owls, who shot a dreary 28%, including 5-29 from three-point land, and they close out the season with a 21-10 mark. Stonehill shot 47% overall, hit 6-15 from deep, made 12-14 at the line and grabbed eleven more rebounds (46-35) to punctuate their success and earn a spot in the next round.
- St. Thomas Aquinas made a bit of history by beating Caldwell in the final game of the day, 61-45. Both teams came into the contest never having won an NCAA tournament game but the 4th-seeded Spartans had it their way basically all the way. STAC bolted to an 8-0 lead and never looked back, although the #5 seed Cougars managed to hang around most of the night. The Spartans led by as many as ten points in the first half before settling for a 37-30 halftime bulge. They turned up the defense in the third period, however, limiting Caldwell to only four points (2-12 FG) and extending the gap to 48-34 by the end of the quarter. The Cougars, who shot 31% overall and were pounded on the glass (50-32) and in second chance points (17-0), never made a serious run after that and bowed out of the field with a 24-7 record. Adiya Henderson (18 points, 10 rebounds), Jenna Erickson (11 points, 6 boards, 5 assists) and Emily Preston (9 points, 9 caroms) led the STAC effort, one whose only blight was 23 turnovers. The Spartans also enjoyed better luck at the line (13-19; Caldwell 3-6 FT) and forced 18 Cougar giveaways at the other end. Kristen Drogsler (18 points, 6 rebounds) was a bright spot for Caldwell but she had minimal help with Maura Kelty (7 points, 8 boards) their next-highest scorer. St. Thomas Aquinas will face Stonehill in the other regional semifinal as a result of their landmark victory.