Women's Basketball Orchestrates Comeback Victory, 64-58, Over AIC
Links: Box Score | Aria Johnson Interview
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Merrimack College women's basketball team executed a come-from-behind effort against American International College on Wednesday night, defeating the Yellow Jackets, 64-58. The Warriors trailed for the majority of the second half, before taking the lead for good with less than three minutes to go.
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 64 | AIC 58
Records: Merrimack (10-6, 6-5 NE-10) | AIC (9-10, 4-7 NE-10)
Location: Bert Hammel Court | North Andover, Mass.
What They Said
Head coach Monique LeBlanc: "Tonight certainly was a grind-it-out type of game, where both teams were playing strong defense. It was a game of runs and I was happy with how we battled down the stretch to secure a win."
How It Happened
Fast forward to the final six minutes of the game, where the Warriors appeared to be out of it. At the 5:52 mark, Krista Ferrentino, AIC's leading scorer, hit a jumper to make it a seven-point game at 50-43.
At that point, the Warriors turned into a different team. Merrimack scored nine of the next 11 points with four different players scoring over that stretch. With 2:29 remaining, sophomore Caitlyn Garger (Hicksville, N.Y.) curled around a screen at the top of the key and drilled a three-pointer to tie the game at 52-52.
The Yellow Jackets missed two shots on their next possession, including a block from Garger on the second attempt to get the ball back. It was some kind of second half for the Hicksville native, as Garger connected on another three-pointer to give Merrimack its first lead since three minutes into the second half. Over the final two minutes, AIC did not get closer than four points as Merrimack sunk seven-of-eight free throws to clinch the game.
The second half actually began with a Warriors rally, as the Navy and Gold scored the first seven points of the stanza to take a 31-26 lead with 18:28 to go. Unfortunately for Merrimack, AIC answered with an 11-0 run to take a 37-31 advantage, a lead they would hold until Garger's back-to-back three points.
Merrimack was coming off a first half that saw them shot just six-of-28 from the field against Le Moyne in a loss on Saturday afternoon. Seven minutes into the game, it appeared they had put that game in distant memory. The Warriors scored 11 of the contests first 14 points, capped off by an Aria Johnson (Los Osos, Calif.) layup at the 13:32 mark.
After that though, the Warriors went on a scoring drought. Merrimack would not score over the next 4:11 of gametime, allowing the Yellow Jackets to go on a 14-0 run. A Tia Scott (New York, N.Y.) jumper with 8:31 to go in the half ended the drought. The score read 17-13 in favor of AIC.
The Yellow Jackets scored five unanswered points to make it 22-13 with 6:14 remaining. Merrimack would answer with a 7-0 scamper with Johnson putting the exclamation points on the run with a layup to make it 22-20. AIC would keep Merrimack at bay from that point on, taking a 26-24 lead into the halftime break.
Inside The Numbers
- Johnson had a career night finished with a double-double of 18 points and 15 rebounds. Those 15 boards sets a new career high, breaking a mark of 13 that she hit earlier this season against Bloomfield. She finished five-for-11 from the field, but connected on eight-of-10 from the charity stripe
- Revelation from three: Garger hit two of the biggest shots of her career from beyond the arc to win the game for the Warriors. She is now eight-of-14 from three-point range over her last four games after only attempting three from beyond the arc in the previous 12 games
- Merrimack won despite getting only six points from its leading scorer, Chloe Rothman (Newton, Mass.). Senior Cassi Amenta (Lynn, Mass.) gave the Navy and Gold solid minutes, with seven points and eight board in 25 minutes off the bench
- The Warriors took advantage of their trips to the free-throw line, making 21-of-25. AIC only advanced to the charity stripe 12 times.
Up Next
The road does not not get easier for Merrimack, as the Warriors will travel to 11th-ranked Adelphi on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. The Panthers are undefeated at home this season and have won all but one of their home games by at least 10 points.
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