Adelphi, Bentley, Le Moyne, Saint Anselm Advance to NE10 Women's Basketball Semifinals

Adelphi, Bentley, Le Moyne, Saint Anselm Advance to NE10 Women's Basketball Semifinals

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Dolphins, Hawks Upset the Party in NE10 Women's Basketball Semifinals

Third-seeded Le Moyne and Saint Anselm advanced during the Quarterfinal Round of the 2017 Northeast-10 Conference Women's Basketball Championship. Here's how Sunday's action played out-

#1 SW Adelphi 69, #5 SW Southern Connecticut 52 | BOXSCORE

GARDEN CITY, N.Y. - The top seeds out of the NE10's Southwest Division survived a scare on Sunday afternoon, as Adelphi fought back in the fourth quarter after letting a lead slip to defeat a Quarterfinal Round.

With the win, the Panthers (24-4) advance to host the Semifinals of the conference tournament on Thursday, March 2. The Brown and Gold will play host to Le Moyne, the No. 3 seeds out of the Southwest Division.

Niajah Morgan was a spark plug off the bench for Adelphi in the victory, scoring a career-high 19 points with four makes from behind the three-point line to lead four Panthers in double-figures. Julia Gnieser recorded 14 points, her third double-figure game in the past five, and four assists, while Sierra Clark overcame a 3-14 day from the floor with a 7-8 showing at the line for 13 points, while chipping in six boards and five blocks. Rounding out Adelphi's scorers was Calli Balfour, who scored 11 and pulled down a game-high 14 rebounds with six steals.

The Owls (12-17) got 18 points from Maria Wesleyj on 7-14 shooting, and 15 from Abby Hurlbert off the bench as the visiting team knocked down 10 three-pointers in the game.

#1 NE Bentley 76, #5 NE Merrimack 43 | BOXSCORE

WALTHAM, Mass. – After the two regular season meetings weren’t decided until the final minute, Bentley established control early in the Quarterfinals of the NE10 Conference Championships and cruised to a 76-43 win over Merrimack Sunday afternoon at the Dana Center.

Bentley, which attained the 23rd 25-win season in program history, led 22-9 after the opening quarter and 50-17 at the half en route to the 13th consecutive win this season and 16th straight in NE10 championship tournament action. The 25-4 Falcons, seeded number one in the NE10’s Northeast Division, will host third-seeded Saint Anselm in a semifinal match-up Thursday at 7 pm.

Bentley, ranked 15th in the country, was led by junior guard Lauren Green, senior All-America forward Jen Gemma and sophomore forward Victoria Lux with the trio combining for 48 points on 18-of-30 shooting before all three sat out the final stanza.

The opening quarter for the Falcons included a 20-5 run after Merrimack scored the game’s first basket with most of those coming off turnovers. Green, who finished with a game-high 19 points, picked up seven markers in the first without missing a shot (a baseline jumper, the first of her five three-pointers and two free throws).

Merrimack, which finished its season at 13-15, was led by sophomore guard Lexi Martin with 14 points and five steals.

#3 NE Saint Anselm 76, #2 SW American International 53 | BOXSCORE

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - For the first time in 17 years, Saint Anselm has advanced to the NE10 Semifinals following a 76-53 victory at American International on Sunday afternoon in Springfield, Mass.

The No. 3-seeded Hawks improve to 19-9 with the win, posting the program's first win in the NE10 Tournament since 2004. Saint Anselm will travel to #15 and top-seeded Bentley on Thursday night for a 7 p.m. meeting with the Falcons. 

No. 2 seed American International sits at 19-10 overall and awaits their potential NCAA Tournament fate.

Candace Andrews scored a game-high 26 points to go with four rebounds, seven assists and four steals in the win. Kaila Duarte posted her second-straight double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds, while Clairee Putnam added 14 points of her own. Caitlyn Abela chipped in eight points and seven rebounds as well.

AIC was led by 23 points and 14 rebounds from Dana Watts with Imani Stepney adding 16 points and seven rebounds. Watts scored her 1,000th career point in the loss.

#3 SW Le Moyne 62, #2 NE Assumption 54 | BOXSCORE

WORCESTER, Mass. - No. 2 seed Assumption trailed by as many as 16 points in the opening quarter but fought back to cut the deficit to one point in the final quarter. However, third seed Le Moyne hit some big shots down the stretch to advance with the 62-54 upset victory in the NE10 Quarterfinals on Sunday afternoon.

Le Moyne got off to a terrific start, outscoring the Hounds 16-2 over the game's first eight minutes. Nicole Riddick led the Dolphins to their early lead, tallying seven points. Recently-named NE10 Rookie of the Year, McKayla Roberts, led the Dolphins with 16 points.

Assumption struggled from the field throughout, shooting just 32.7 percent from the field and was just 7-23 from downtown with 17 turnovers. 

Kelly Carey led the Hounds with 17 points and six rebounds, connecting on five 3-pointers. 

Information for this release provided by the athletic communications staffs at Adelphi, Assumption, Bentley, and Saint Anselm.

ABOUT THE NE10
The NE10 is an association of 15 diverse institutions serving student-athletes across 24 NCAA Division II sports. Together we build brilliant futures by embracing the journey of every student-athlete. 

Each year, 4,500 student-athletes compete in conference championships, making the NE10 the largest DII conference in the country in terms of sport sponsorship. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the NE10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.