Women's Basketball Dominates Le Moyne, 68-48
Links: Box Score | Monique LeBlanc Interview
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Merrimack College women's basketball team continued its stellar defensive play, limiting the visiting Le Moyne College Dolphins to 16 first-half points – its fewest allowed this season in Northeast-10 Conference play – en route to a 68-48 victory on Saturday from Hammel Court. The Navy and Gold never trailed in the game, extending their season-long winning streak to five games.
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 68, Le Moyne 48
Records: Merrimack (9-7, 7-4 NE10) | Le Moyne (9-7, 5-5 NE10)
Location: Hammel Court | North Andover, Mass.
The Turning Point:
Merrimack's torid shooting in the opening quarter staked the Navy and Gold to a 14-point lead. The Warriors shot nearly 70 percent from the field over the first 10 minutes, shooting 10-of-15 from the floor. Freshan Denia Davis-Stewart (Dorchester, Mass.) led the team with nine first-quarter points, including a stretch of seven consecutive points
How It Happened (First Quarter)
- Merrimack controlled the game for the get-go, jumping out a 13-4 lead over the first 5:40 of the first quarter. Sophomores Lexi Martin (Franklin, Mass.) and Hannah Neild (Litchfield, N.H.) combined for seven points over the stretch including a triple for the latter
- From that point, Davis-Stewart scored the next seven points for the Warriors, including a three-point play. After Davis-Stewart's personal run, the Warrior held a 20-8 lead with 2:29 left in the quarter
- In the final minute, freshman Alyssa Torres (Bohemia, N.Y.) made her first field goal of the afternoon and senior My'Asia Alston (Cohoes, N.Y.) converted a bucket in the final seconds to make it 24-10 Merrimack entering the second
How It Happened (Second Quarter)
- The Warriors – who entered the day leading the NE10 in field-goal percentage defense – held Le Moyne to two points over the first 5:26 of the frame. The Navy and Gold went on a 9-2 run over that span, including Neild's second triple of the half
- With 2:50 left before halftime, Torres sank a right-corner trey – the first 3-pointer of her career on her first attempt – to make it a 22-point game, 36-14. That started a quick 6-0 spurt for the Navy and Gold, finishing the opening stanza with 39 points and a 39-16 advantage
- The 16 points allowed marked a season low for the Warriors in terms of points allowed in conference play, while the 39 points scored fell one shy of tying their season home for first-half scoring
How It Happened (Third Quarter)
- The third frame saw more of the same occur from the first half. Alston scored six consecutive points in the opening minutes, with two free throws falling through to put her in double figures for the game. The Warriors led, 47-21, with 5:52 to play
- Free throws from Martin brought Merrimack to the half-century mark, 51-23, giving the hosts their largest lead of the game to that point. Neild put an exclamation point on the quarter with a straightaway swish from distance to make it a 54-26 game after 30 minutes of action
How It Happened (Fourth Quarter)
- The Dolphins made things interesting, using a 14-0 run over the first four minutes of the final quarter to cut the Warriors' lead in half, 54-40
- Merrimack answered with a 7-0 spurt to reassert control of the game, including a run of five straight makes from the free-throw line. The score rested a 61-40 Merrimack with 4:01 remaining in regulation
- Freshmen Kathryn Roberts (Grand Terrace, Calif.) and Emily Houle (Attleboro, Mass.) checked in late for the Navy and Gold, their third and eight appearances of the year, respectively. When the horned sounded, the final score read 68-48 as the Navy and Gold improved to 4-0 in 2017
Inside The Numbers
- The 20-point margin of victory marked the biggest win of the season for the Navy and Gold. Merrimack has now not trailed in two straight games, and has led for its last 119:37 of game time. The Warriors have not faced a deficit since Pace hit two free throws to take a 2-0 lead three games ago
- Four Warriors scored in double figures, including Davis-Stewart's second double-double of the season. Nine of her 13 points came in the first quarter, while she contributed 10 rebounds and a game-high three blocks
- For the fourth straight game, Martin led the Warriors in scoring with 16 points on 4-of-9 shooting. She hit all eight of her free-throw attempts improving to 38-of-43 on the season from the charity stripe
- Neild made it back-to-back games in double figures with 16 points off the bench, tying Martin for the game high in scoring. She converted 4-of-6 triples, taking a team lead by making her 40th trey through 16 games
- Merrimack's first-half effort defensively propelled the Navy and Gold to a 23-point halftime lead. The Dolphins scored only six points in the second quarter after a 10-point opening frame. Not a single Dolphin finished the afternoon in double figures
Up Next
The Navy and Gold travel to the College of Saint Rose on Wednesday for a 5:30 p.m. contest in Albany, N.Y.
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