#CLINCHED
The Warriors are heading to Atlantic City in March after a dominant victory over Rider last Saturday. Over the past 16 games, the Warriors have been victorious in 13, holding opponents to under 60 points in nine of them. On Thursday, it was Madison Roman who paved the way for the Warriors to win their fifth straight game and complete the sweep against the Sacred Heart Pioneers.Over the past weekend, the Warriors took down Siena by 19 in a total team effort. Four Warriors scoring in double-digits, with Lydia Melaschenko leading the pack with 22. Last Thursday, the Warriors used a 4th quarter buzzer beater to force overtime, where they eventually emerged winners against Marist. The win marked their 4th season sweep of the season. The Warriors held Rider to under 40 two weeks ago, a feat that the Warriors have only achieved twice in the past two seasons. Senior Lydia Melaschenko broke the single-season program record for 3-pointers (77) with a three pointer in the 3rd quarter.
Who to Watch
Not only does Lydia Melaschenko lead the MAAC in 3-pointers per game, she is third in THE NATION in 3-pointers per game, averaging 3.24 per game. Lydia hit four against Siena (22 pts) on Valentines Day, and four against Rider two weeks ago to break the single-season program record for 3-pointers. It was six treys in the 22 points win over Sacred Heart last that brought her within striking distance of the record. Melaschenko has hit 30 3's (5 per game) over the past six games. She made 8 3-pointers in back to back games last month, coming one away from a program record.
The MAAC's leading rebounder Madison Roman had nine rebounds in a come-from-behind victory over Sacred Heart on Thursday. She totaled a career high six steals in a full 40 minutes of play. Roman added a double-double after putting up 12 points and 11 rebounds in the win over Siena last weekend. She exploded for 23 points in the overtime win over Marist last week in he overtime victory.
Se'Lah On Fire!
The past three games Se'Lah Reddick has averaged 13 ppg and 4.7 rpg. In a close game against Marist last week, Reddick scored a career high 18 points shooting 64% from the field. The very next game Reddick passed her previous career high and scored 14, making seven shots for the second straight game.
Defending Like Warriors
The Warriors have allowed under 60 points in 11 of their last 16 games and under 70 in 14 of their last 16 games. Madison Roman leads the conference in defensive rebounds with 197 and Paloma Garcia is third in the MAAC in steals with 561. Merrimack is second in the conference as a team with 95 total blocked shots, highlighted by 59 from graduate student Oralye Kiefer.
