Women’s Basketball Blitzes Franklin Pierce, 65-36

Links: Box Score

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Merrimack College women's basketball led coast-to-coast Thursday afternoon, winning their rescheduled Northeast-10 Conference tilt against Franklin Pierce, 65-36, from Hammel Court. The win drops Merrimack's magic number down to one to clinch a NE10 Championship berth.

The Basics
Score: Merrimack 65, Franklin Pierce 36
Records: Merrimack (13-9, 9-8 NE10) | Franklin Pierce (4-18, 1-16 NE10)
Location: Hammel Court | North Andover, Mass.     

NE10 Postseason Outlook:
The top-five programs in the Northeast Division advance to the NE10 Championship. The fourth-place finisher hosts the No. 5 seed from the Southwest Division, while the fifth-place finisher travels to the No. 4 seed out of the Southwest for the First Round. Seeds No. 1-3 earn byes to the Quarterfinals. Merrimack has four games remaining in the regular season. 

1. Stonehill (20-2, 16-1)
2. Bentley (20-3, 14-3)
3. Saint Anselm (15-9, 11-6)
4. SNHU (15-8, 11-6)
5. Merrimack (13-9, 9-8)
6. Saint Michael's (8-14, 5-12)
7. Assumption (7-15, 4-13)
8. Franklin Pierce (4-18, 1-16)

Marquee Moments:

• The Warriors never trailed in the game, and led by double figures for the final 28:24 of Thursday's contest
• Merrimack's defense suffocated Franklin Pierce, holding the Ravens to single digits in each of the first three quarters. Franklin Pierce scored just five points in the third, with Merrimack holding them 2-of-16 shooting from the field

Rapid Recap

• With the team's separated by two points, 6-4, midway through the opening quarter, junior Lindsay Werner scored seven points over the final five minutes to spurn a 10-4 stretch that resulted in a 16-8 first-quarter lead for the Navy and Gold
• Three different Warriors contributed to a 9-2 run to start the second frame, including four points for freshman Mayson Kimball, and the Warriors held a 25-10 lead with six minutes left in the second.
• The Navy and Gold netted eight points over the final four minutes of the half, capped by a layup by sophomore Emily Houle just before the buzzer that gave the Warriors a 34-17 advantage through 20 minutes
• Freshman Alyssa Casey scored four points, Werner added four of her own and Merrimack started the third quarter on a 10-2 run to take a 44-19 advantage four minutes into the frame. The Warriors end up outscoring the Ravens, 16-5, in the quarter. Sophomore Kathryn Roberts came off the bench and recorded two points, three rebounds and two blocks in the third
• Playing its reserves for the majority of the fourth, the Warriors bested the Ravens, 15-14, to complete the 29-point win

Notes and Notables

• Davis-Stewart notched her fifth double-double of the season and first in five games with 10 points and 11 rebounds to go along with six blocks
• Werner netted a game-high 16 points, hitting one three-pointer. The one triple gave the junior a new career best, hitting her 56^th of the season
• Kimball posted an efficient effort, finishing with 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting. Casey – her rookie counterpart – totaled nine points and six boards
• Each member of Merrimack's bench played at least 10 minutes. Roberts finished with four points and five rebounds while senior captain Cecilia Reyes contributed three rebounds and one assist
• The Warriors totaled a season-best 54 rebounds, outrebounding the Ravens by 15. Merrimack bested Franklin Pierce in the paint, 38-16

Up Next
Merrimack hosts Southern New Hampshire on Saturday, celebrating Alumni Day against the Penmen at 1 p.m. at Hammel Court. Any alumna interested in attending are asked to register here.