FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The Merrimack College Women's basketball team almost pulled off an epic comeback Saturday afternoon when they took on the Sacred Heart University Pioneers from the Pitt Center. After going down by seven points in the first quarter the Warriors brought it all the way back in the fourth, but just didn't have enough fuel in the tank as they eventually fell to the Pioneers by a score of 61-56.
The Warriors were once again led by senior guard,
Kate Mager, who capped off another impressive game shooting the ball as she finished with 14 points while going 6-11 from the field. Fellow senior,
Carla Balague, finished up right behind Mager on the score sheet with 13 points, while also collecting four rebounds, all of which were defensive. Junior guard,
Diamond Christian, put in some important minutes off of the bench as she ended this one with six points, three rebounds, two assists, and two steals. A long with Christian, freshman,
Ava Owens, picked up her team off the bench as she finished this one with six points, five rebounds, and three assists.
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 56, Sacred Heart University 61
Records: Merrimack (8-15, 6-9 NEC) Sacred Heart University (7-14, 6-9 NEC)
Location: Fairfield, Conn.
Rapid Recap
- The game started off just the way the Warriors wanted as Mager got into the paint after a missed shot and put back a shot that found the bottom of the net to get Merrimack going. After picking up a defensive stop, junior, Jayme DeCesare, got the ball and started the offense. She surveyed the floor, shook her defender with a textbook crossover, and found graduate student, Paige McCormick, who nailed the long range two. Next time the Warriors found themselves on the offensive side of the floor they got the ball right back to McCormick who pulled up for two more, giving Merrimack a 6-0 lead. As time ticked down in the opening quarter, junior guard, Kaylee Thomas, dribbled the ball through two defenders and then dished a pass to graduate student, Mayson Kimball, who hit pure nylon with just seconds remaining.
- The second quarter saw the Warriors start to climb back into it as DeCesare got the offensive momentum going with a straight away three. Christian then got in on the fun as she jumped over her defender and floated a pass to sophomore, Teneisia Brown, who battled her way through a defender at the cup for two more. On the following defensive possession, the Pioneers a perfect pass, but to the wrong team as Mager snagged the steal and found a wide open Balague who had nothing but time to convert. Balague then piggy backed off her last bucket, finding the ball in her hands from beyond the arch this time. The senior, got a great feed from Thomas and nailed the triple. In similar fashion to the first quarter, the second quarter ended with Kimball nailing a mid-range jumper as time ticked off the clock to have the Warriors feeling good going into the locker room.
- After the Warriors got their rest in the locker room, they took the floor and it was the Kate Mager show to start. The New City, N.Y. native hit back-to-back threes to get Merrimack back into the game early in the second half. Merrimack then got a big spark from Owens as the freshman made her best play of the season with a cross over and then spin to shake her defender and then nail the lay in. A few minutes later as time expired once again the Warriors got a huge bucket from Christian. The Bronx, N.Y. drove the lane and flicked a shot up off the glass and in while getting fouled. This set up a big fourth quarter for basketball fans.
- The Warriors got a couple of big buckets in the final frame including a three from Mager, but in the end it was too little too late as they fell to the Pioneers
Up Next
After concluding their road schedule for this season, the Warriors finish the season on a three game home stand starting with a matchup against LIU next Thursday at 7:00 PM for Pink game.
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For continuing coverage of Merrimack College Athletics, visit MerrimackAthletics.com and follow the Warriors on Twitter and on Facebook.
