Links: Box Score
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Merrimack College women's basketball team was held to under 25 percent shooting in the second half on Wednesday evening as the visiting Southern Connecticut State Owls - the leaders of the Southwest Division - pulled away from the Warriors and left Hammel Court with a 54-41 Northeast-10 Conference win.
The Basics
Score: Southern Conn. 54,
Merrimack 41
Records: Merrimack (7-6, 3-5 NE10) | Southern Conn. (12-3, 6-1 NE10)
Location: Hammel Court | North Andover, Mass.
Marquee Moments:
- Despite only scoring 10 points themselves, the Owls' defense contained Merrimack to 2-of-15 shooting in the third quarter, holding the Warriors to just four points
- The Navy and Gold saw their seven-point halftime deficit increase to 13, which then jumped to 18, 47-29, after Southern Connecticut hit its first two attempts of the third quarter
Rapid Recap
- Freshman Alyssa Casey (Andover, Mass.) and junior Lindsay Werner (Groton, Mass.) hit triples to stake the Warriors to a 6-2 lead, but the Owls responded with a 10-0 run that lasted nearly four minutes to double up the Warriors, 12-6
- It appeared the Owls would take an 18-9 lead to the second quarter, but Werner drained her second trey of the frame to make it a 18-12 game after 10 minutes
- Facing a 21-15 deficit early in the second quarter, the Warriors used a 6-1 stretch to pull within one, 22-21, with 5:07 left until halftime. The Owls controlled the latter half of the stanza, however, outscoring the Warriors by six to take a 32-25 advantage into the third quarter
- Both defenses dominated the third quarter, with the two programs combining to shoot 2-of-18 from the floor over the first seven minutes. Freshman Mayson Kimball (Webster, N.H.) netted a lay-in to snap a seven-minute scoring drought, pulling the Warriors within 10 at 37-27
- The Owls started the first 3:31 of the fourth quarter on a 10-4 stretch, increasing their lead to a game-high 19 points, 52-33.
- From there, the Warriors held the Owls scoreless until there was just 40 seconds to play, but could only pull within 13 points, 52-39, behind a pair of buckets for sophomore Denia Davis-Stewart (Dorchester, Mass.)
Notes and Notables
- Battling through foul trouble, Davis-Stewart led the way for the Warriors with 12 points and 14 rebounds. She shot 6-of-12 from the field
- Kimball collected a career-high 11 rebounds, while finishing with seven points and a season-high five assists
- The Owls had the edge from beyond the arc, hitting nine three-pointers compared to just four for Merrimack. Six of the nine came from the duo of Abby Hurlbert and Murphy Murad, who combined for 35 points
Up Next
Merrimack's next game will be away from campus, when the Warriors travel to Pace University for a 1:30 p.m. contest on Saturday afternoon.
