* Six CACC games filled the Tuesday slate and largely solidified the playoff picture, although there are still things to be determined. The report begins with the two key CACC South contests and one important CACC North clash…
* A huge fourth quarter was the key for Jefferson, which recovered from an eighteen-point third quarter deficit to beat Georgian Court, 82-76. The Rams trailed by a 58-40 tally with 4:44 left in the third frame, the largest lead the Lions held all night, started the comeback with a 15-5 surge to end the stanza down 63-55. A 17-1 spree to start the last quarter (32-6 overall) ensured that the Rams not only caught GCU but by-passed them totally (72-64, 3:31). The Lions never got within a single possession thereafter and lost their third game on the spin. Alynna Williams (30 points, 28 in the second half; 9-19 FG, 5-12 3FG, 7-8 FT) hit the 30-point barrier for the third time this season to lead the Rams attack and she had excellent support from Haley Meinel (career-high tying 20 points; 7-12 FG) and Sabria Lytes (11 points, 7 caroms). Jefferson, now on a six-game win streak (and still tied for third place in the CACC South Division), had a solid edge at the line (19-28; GCU 8-10 FT) to aid their effort. Safiyyah Lee (23 points, 9 boards; 9-15 FG; 2-3 3FG, 3-4 FT) and Tian Addison (personal-high 20 points; 6-11 FG, 4-8 3FG) were the main threats for the Lions with Savawn Hughes chipping in with 10 points and five boards. Georgian Court, on a three-game downturn, cannot qualify for the CACC playoffs.
* Chestnut Hill dominated the middle two quarters and held off a late Goldey-Beacom rally to snare a 64-54 win and stay even with Jefferson for third place in the CACC South Division. After a 17-all draw in the first quarter the Griffins went to work, taking a 33-26 lead into the break and claiming full control in the third period. CHC put together a 17-0 run to extend their lead to 52-28 (3:56) and rode into the last frame ahead, 56-35. The Lighting came up with a 14-0 burst midway through the fourth quarter to slice the deficit to 60-52 (2:31) but the mountain was too large to climb and GBC saw a three-game win streak snapped as a result. Lauren Crim (19 points; 6-10 3FG), Cassie Sebold (19 points, 9 assists) and Bri Hewlett (12 points; 6-7 FG) led the Chestnut Hill attack, one that out-shot GBC, 47%-36%. Sarah Round (11 points 5 assists), Alexis Harrison (11 points, 7 boards) and Lexi Weikert (10 points) fronted the Lightning, who now face a two-game gap to the CACC playoff spots with three games left. The Griffins, by the way, were the only road winner of the night.
* The playoff race in the CACC North Division tightened up considerably after Concordia’s 72-68 win over Nyack, pulling the Clippers within a game of the Warriors for fourth place in the standings. Concordia widened a 38-33 halftime edge to 47-35 midway through the third period (4:10) but Nyack clawed back and came as close as two points (68-66) with 49 seconds left. Marigona Bacaliu’s (13 points) trey with 21 ticks left killed the Nyack rally, though, making it a 71-66 game in the Clippers favor. She was one of five Concordia players in double digits with Sara Hopkins, Nicole Nicholson (14 points each), Christina Brown (11 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists) and Jaayden Lafontant (10 points, 8 boards) part of a well-balanced offense. Kyla Given (17 points), Jocelin Wright (16 points) and Jasmine Cruse (12 points, 11 boards) sparked the Warriors offense. The Clippers, who halted a three-game slide, enjoyed a 25-13 edge in points-off-turnovers to help their cause and make the stretch run that much closer for both teams.
* The CACC South Division regular season champion for the fourth straight season is the University of the Sciences, who confirmed their status with a 74-53 win over Holy Family, their seventeenth consecutive victory. The triumph also avenges the Devils sole league loss of the campaign and their last loss overall (December 3). Jordan Vitelli (26 points; 9-13 FG, 2-6 3FG, 6-7 FT) and Irisa Ye (22 points; 10-19 FG, 2-6 3FG) led the way for the Devils, netting 27 points between them (Vitelli had 16) in the decisive first half. The home team enjoyed a 9-0 second quarter flurry that helped stake them to a 39-24 halftime advantage and followed that with an 8-0 third period sortie to push the margin to 54-34. The Tigers, despite good games from Anjelai Hayes (17 points) and Elizabeth Radley (16 points, 7 boards), were unable to make a dent in the second half and sustained the loss. Sciences had the upper hand in most areas, including shooting (48%-38% FG), paint points (38-22) and points-off-turnovers (18-8), to help their cause. Even though HFU is out of the chase for the top seed in the division, they have a two-game loss column lead for second place in the loop (and subsequently a home tournament game).
* CACC North Division champion Post had a comfortable time in dispatching Felician by a 91-44 count, leading all the way (an 8-0 start) and making it three wins on the spin. Angelica Flores (22 points, 7 rebounds), Katelyn Andres (20 points) and Katelyn Canals (11 points, 6 caroms) all played well for the Eagles as they dominated in all three shooting categories (57%-29% FG; 17-31 3FG to Felician’s 1-11 showing; and 14-21 at the line to Felician’s 9-15 effort). Post also rang up a 44-27 rebound edge while racing to 19-8, 49-16 and 62-29 leads at the usual checkpoints. Briana Lee (14 points, 5 rebounds) and Tiara Mahorn (10 points) collected double digits for the Golden Falcons, who are officially out of CACC playoff contention.
* Dominican has almost locked up the #2 seed in the CACC North Division after handing Bloomfield an 87-63 defeat, the Bears fourteenth in a row. The Chargers never trailed in this one, using a 17-2 jaunt to end the first period in command, 26-9. They led 54-29 at the break and 74-39 after three frames on the way to ending their own negative run (three straight losses) of late. Khay’la Latimer (15 rebounds; 4-7 3FG), Korina Guerra (8 boards) and Taylor Tomlinson (7 rebounds; 7-11 FG) all notched 14 points to top the DC attack while Jaid Harrell added 10 points and six rebounds off the bench. Caitlin Townes (16 points), Jaylah Bennett (13 points, 8 caroms) and Kayla Sykes (10 points) headed the Bears effort. The Chargers, who owned a 58-44 rebound edge and had the better of all the shooting categories, need just one more win or one Caldwell loss to lock up the 2nd seed in the division.