15-4 Overtime Run Propels Women's Basketball to 72-61 Victory Tuesday vs. Franklin Pierce
Links: Box Score | Game Highlights | Davis-Stewart Interview
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – Sophomore Hannah Neild (Litchfield, N.H.) drained a 3-pointer with under two minutes remaining in regulation to force overtime and the Merrimack College women's basketball team proceeded to outscore the visiting Franklin Pierce University Ravens by 11 points in the fifth period for a 72-61 Northeast-10 Conference victory on Tuesday night at Hammel Court
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 72, Franklin Pierce 61
Records: Merrimack (4-5, 3-2 NE10) | Franklin Pierce (2-7, 0-6 NE10)
Location: Hammel Court | North Andover, Mass.
How It Happened
- Franklin Pierce started the game on a 9-4 run, making 4-of-6 from the field including one 3-pointer. Sophomore Lexi Martin (Franklin, Mass.) dashed to the bucket on a feed from freshman Giulia Orlando (Haverhill, Mass.) to make it a 9-6 game with under six minutes left in the first
- A Dana Campbell triple doubled the Ravens' lead and a putback from Mikayla Deguire made it 14-6 in favor of the visitors at the 3:22 mark. Neild sank a straightaway trey for the quarter's last bucket, making it 18-11 Ravens after 10 minutes
- The Ravens built their lead to nine before Merrimack went on a 7-0 run the featured a triple from Martin and four points in the post for freshman forward Denia Davis-Stewart (Dorchester, Mass.). Davis-Stewart's turnaround jumper prompted a Franklin Pierce timeout with 5:41 left in the half
- Out of the timeout, Merrimack forced a shot-clock violated, broke the Franklin Pierce press and found Davis-Stewart underneath to tie the game at 22-all. Two free throws from Davis-Stewart on Merrimack's next possession gave the Warriors at 24-22 advantage
- Over the final five minutes of the first half, the team's combined for 13 points, with the Warriors holding a 30-29 lead at halftime. After not hitting a field goal up to the final two minutes, senior guard My'Asia Alston (Cohoes, N.Y.) scored Merrimack's final four point of the half
- The Warriors built a six-point lead, 36-30, by starting the second half on a 6-1 run. Senior Savannah Johnson (Palmdale, Calif.), Davis-Stewart and sophomore Karlee Alves (Ellington, Conn.) each hit field goals during the spurt to account for the Warriors' output
- The Navy and Gold's remained remaining at five for the majority of the third quarter, but over the last 55 seconds the Ravens netted three points to make it a one-possession game, 45-43, entering the fourth
- With the lead back at 48-43 and under eight minutes remaining, Davis-Stewart swatted away her fifth shot of the game to give Merrimack the ball back. It marked a new season high for the Warriors' first-year rim protector
- Over the next 2:30, Franklin Pierce went on a 7-0 run to take a 50-48 lead with five minutes left in the contest. The Ravens extended the run to 11-1, taking a 54-49 lead. With less than three minutes to play, Alston responded with a 5-0 run of her own to tie the game with two minutes left
- A three-point play put the Ravens up 57-54 with two minutes to play, but with 1:34 on the clock Neild drained a corner triple to tie the game. Alston missed a buzzer-beater on Merrimack's final possession, sending the game to overtime
- In the extra session, Neild continued where she left off by hitting a left-wing 3-point to make it 60-57 Merrimack. Merrimack held Franklin Pierce scoreless for the majority of overtime, with Alston hitting four throws to extend the Warriors' lead to 64-59. The Warriors made all 10 of their free throws in the final minute of overtime, clinching the 11-point win
Inside The Numbers
- Johnson and Davis-Stewart combined to score 25 points, pull down 19 rebounds and record seven blocks in the post against the Ravens. The former registered a double-double with 13 points and 10 boards while the latter added 10 points, nine rebounds and a season-high five blocks
- Merrimack totaled seven blocks on the night after entering the week as the top blocking team in the NE10, averaging 5.6 per game. That average ranked the Warriors 15th nationwide in blocks, as well
- The Warriors employed a balanced offense, with five players scoring in double figures. Alston (17), Neild (16) and Martin (12) joined Johnson and Davis-Stewart in double digits. Neild made 50 percent of her 3-point attempts (4-8), leading all players
- After making all 13 of her free-throw attempt last week, Alston shot 8-of-10 from the charity stripe against Franklin Pierce. Those eight makes included a perfect 6-of-6 at the line in the final minute of overtime
- The contest marked the first home overtime for the Navy and Gold in over two years. Merrimack has now played back-to-back overtime games, which they also did in cross-divisional play last season
- Field Goals (%): MER 24-56 (42.9) // FPU 22-66 (33.3)
- 3-Point Field Goals (%): MER 6-15 (40.0) // FPU 3-14 (21.4)
Up Next
The Navy and Gold travel to Worcester, Mass. on Thursday night to play in their final game before finals week, taking on the Assumption College Greyhounds in NE10 play beginning at 5:30 p.m.
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