* The Northeast10 regular season closed on Tuesday and with it come definitive playoff matchups. Let’s take a look at the final evening of action, starting in Manchester, where the #2 seed in the Northeast Division was on the line…
* Shannon Ryan produced a big game (29 points, 18 rebounds; 13-19 FG) to lead St. Anselm to a 68-61 victory over Bentley, securing the 2nd seed in the Northeast Division and the opportunity to host a quarterfinal game on Sunday (against New Haven). The Hawks led most of the way, using 10-0 and 7-0 first quarter runs to build a lead that crested at a dozen and settled in at 36-27 by halftime. Bentley battled back and cut the deficit to 47-43 by the end of the third quarter and when Julia Ford drilled a trey to start the fourth stanza, the Falcons were within 47-46. St. A’s stayed ahead with a 7-2 surge pushing the margin to 54-48 (6:51). Once again, Bentley rallied and closed the gap to 54-52 with 5:22 left after a Kolleen Bouchard (career-high 14 points) basket. The Hawks responded with a 9-3 spell (Ryan had the first five points), making it a 63-55 game at the 2:03 mark, which proved to be enough to see them through. Peyton Steinman (20 points) and Grace Guachione (13 points) added support for St. Anselm, which shot better (42%-36%), dominated the paint (42-22) and reached the line more often (St. A’s 14-21; Bentley 7-11 FT) than their guests. Kari Brekke (16 points), Ella Thompson (11 points) and Monica Viapiano (10 points, 7 boards) contributed double figures for Bentley but their four-game win streak ended and they are faced with a trip to Le Moyne in Sunday’s quarterfinals, a rematch of last season’s NE10 title game.
* Across Manchester, Southern New Hampshire claimed the #4 seed in the Northeast Division thanks to a 79-65 win over St. Michael’s and will host AIC in a Friday night first round contest. A 13-2 first quarter binge put the Penmen in control early and they held a 39-22 lead at the half after they ended the period on a 9-2 spell. The Purple Knights, who end the campaign on an eleven-game downturn, stayed in the game in the second half but never got within single digits. Gyanna Russell (19 points, 7 boards; 7-9 FG, 5-6 FT) and Victoria Dean (17 points, 8 rebounds) led the way for SNHU with solid help from Jenna Roche (13 points) and Adriana Timberlake (10 points). SNHU proved to be superior from the floor (44%-38% FG) and at the line (SNHU 19-25; SMC 10-15 FT) in a game that saw both teams misfire from long-range (combined 7-49 3FG). Emma MacDonough (11 points, 8 boards) and Taylor Miller (10 points, 7 rebounds) fronted the St. Mike’s attack. The winner of Friday’s SNHU/AIC clash will visit Adelphi in Sunday’s quarterfinal round.
* Lisa Sulejmani’s basket with 1:19 left was the decisive score in Franklin Pierce’s 59-57 triumph over Assumption in Worcester, ending the Ravens season on a high note and denying the Greyhounds a chance to host a first round NE10 playoff tilt. Neither outfit led by more than seven points in this hotly contested encounter (five ties and twelve lead changes) with AC holding 30-27 (halftime) and 46-40 (third period) leads. FPU opened the fourth quarter on a 9-1 surge (FPU, 49-47, 6:39), setting the stage for a back-and-forth stanza. Assumption wrapped two 5-0 runs around a 4-0 Raven spell to create a 57-53 lead with 3:27 to go but they didn’t score again. Izzy Lipinski (16 points; 8-13 FG) and Rylee Skinner scored to tie the game, allowing Sulejmani’s (19 points, 7 rebounds) bucket to put the Ravens ahead to stay. Both teams had chances to score in the remaining time with Emme Poulin’s (15 points) missed trey for Assumption with six seconds left the final major act in the drama. Emma Carter double-doubled for FPU as they shot 51% overall (and held AC to 34%) and dominated the glass (42-30). Brianna Capacchione (20 points) and Temi Falayi (9 points, 11 rebounds) joined Poulin in double figures for Assumption, which won the turnover battle (23-10) and out-scored Franklin Pierce in points-off-TO’s, 20-9. The Greyhounds visit Pace on Friday in a first round playoff game with the winner advancing to play at Stonehill on Sunday.
* Le Moyne locked down as the #2 seed in the Southwest Division with a 55-42 win over Pace in Syracuse, meaning the defending NE10 champions will reprise last season’s title game on Sunday as they host Bentley in a quarterfinal clash. The Setters, meanwhile, lost a chance to finish 3rd and earn a bye, and will host a first round game against Assumption on Friday. The Dolphins led early (23-7) and arrived at the break with a 32-19 edge over Pace but the Setters hung around and eventually sliced the arrears to 38-31. LC responded with a 12-0 run that bridged the third and fourth quarters to go ahead, 50-31, with 5:56 left. McKayla Roberts (14 points) drilled a trio of three-pointers in the run, forcing Pace to come from behind again. To their credit, the Setters did tear off an 11-1 spell to cut the lead to 51-42 but by then there was just 1:59 left and they ran out of time. Erin Fouracre (12 points) drilled 4-4 at the line in the final minutes to ice the result for LC. Jenna Zimmerman (12 points) and Liz Millea (10 points) also reached twin digits for the Dolphins as they had the better of it at the stripe (LC 15-19; Pace 2-6 FT) and with the ball (12-7 edge in turnovers and a 14-4 advantage in points-off-mistakes). Lauren Schetter (15 points, 5 caroms) and Jackie Dellisanti (9 points, 12 boards) topped the Pace stat sheet.
* The final playoff spot in the Southwest Division belongs to AIC, a 64-54 winner over the College of Saint Rose in Albany. The Yellow Jackets prevailed in each of the first three periods, creating leads of 14-8, 26-18 and 53-35 at the usual checkpoints. A fourth quarter rally from the Golden Knights trimmed the deficit to 61-54 but that came in the final minute and meant Saint Rose ends the year on a twelve-game slide. Destinee Perry (17 points), Kayla Robinson, Nyree Holliman (12 points each) and Asia Turner (13 boards) shared the load for AIC, which enjoyed the upper hand in three-pointers (8-2) and at the foul line (AIC 22-29; Saint Rose 10-15 FT). Cameron Graupman (14 points, 7 caroms), Leah Dollard (14 points) and Nina Fedullo (11 points, 14 boards) did the heavy lifting for Saint Rose but the Yellow Jackets will travel to SNHU for a first round playoff game on Friday.
* Five players reached double digits as Adelphi completed a 26-2 regular season with an 88-62 blowout of Southern Connecticut in Garden City, their tenth straight win. The Panthers, long confirmed as the #1 seed in the Southwest Division (and top seed in the NE10 tourney overall), won all four quarters, steadily building the lead (25-18, 43-35, 68-53) along the way. The Owls did manage to recover from a slow start and used an 11-2 run to grab a 29-27 lead midway through the second period but AU replied with a 12-2 flurry a little later on and never looked back. Julia Strachan (21 points; 7-11 3FG) led the AU effort and she had ample assistance in the forms of Jess Camarda (14 points; 4-7 3FG), Katie Murphy (12 points, 11 assists), Leonie Edringer (12 points, 9 rebounds) and Emily Miccile (11 points, 9 boards). Adelphi shot a crisp 52% and held SCSU to 39% while also prevailing on the glass (39-29) and draining 15-30 from three-point range. Jessica Fressle, Amani Boston (18 points each) and Imani Wheeler (17 points) accounted for the majority of the SCSU scoring but they were not able to keep up with AU from long distance (SCSU was 8-21 from 3FG-land) and came up just short of a playoff berth. Adelphi will host the winner of the Southern New Hampshire/AIC game in a quarterfinal clash on Sunday.