FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Hawks, Penmen Advance to Set Up All-Manchester Showdown in Saturday's Title Tilt
Saint Anselm and Southern New Hampshire prevailed in a pair of thrilling Northeast-10 Conference Semifinal Round games earlier tonight. Here's how the action played out -
#1 NE Southern New Hampshire 65, #2 SW Saint Rose 63 | BOXSCORE
MANCHESTER, N.H. - Another packed house. Another two-point game. Another win. Another trip to the conference finals.
Sophomore Daquaise Andrews led all scorers with 24 points, including 17 in the second half, to help Southern New Hampshire secure a 65-63 Northeast-10 Championship semifinal victory against Saint Rose on Wednesday night in front of a raucous crowd of 1,185 at the SNHU Fieldhouse.
Southern New Hampshire, the top seed in the Northeast Division, advances to the title game for the second straight year and for the third time in five seasons. SNHU will play host to crosstown rival Saint Anselm – the No. 2 seed from the Northeast – on Saturday, March 4 (1 p.m.) at the Fieldhouse.
Saint Anselm won a close one on the road, knocking off the Southwest Division's top seed, Le Moyne College, 71-68. Saint Rose, seeded second in the Southwest, will now await Sunday's selection show to see where it will end up in the NCAA Tournament.
Andrews, who was coming off a career-high 28-point-performance in Sunday's 97-95 quarterfinal triumph against Adelphi, was 8-for-15 from the field, including 6-for-9 after halftime, as well as 3-for-4 from behind the arc and 5-for-8 at the line, while grabbing six rebounds and handing out two assists. Senior Devin Gilligan registered 18 points (7-11 FG, 3-7 3-FG, 1-1 FT), six boards and two helpers.
Chris Dorgler led Saint Rose with 15 point and five rebounds, while senior forward Tyler Sayre added 11 points. Senior guard Damon Coleman contributed 10 points and three assists.
#2 NE Saint Anselm 71, #1 SW Le Moyne 68 | BOXSCORE
SYRACUSE, N.Y. – No. 2-seeded Saint Anselm outlasted top-seeded Le Moyne, 71-68, in a Northeast-10 Conference Championship Semifinal matchup Wednesday night at Ted Grant Court in Syracuse, N.Y.
The Hawks (19-8) advance to their 12th NE10 Championship game in program history, and will try and capture their eighth NE10 Tournament Championship when they travel to cross-town rival Southern New Hampshire on Saturday afternoon for a 1 p.m. game.
This will be only the second time the two teams have met in the NE10 Postseason after they matched up in the NE10 Semifinals a season ago. Saint Anselm and SNHU split their previous two meetings this season with the home team holding serve on both occasions.
The sophomore duo of Tim Guers and Cody Ball scored 21 points apiece to fuel the Hawks victory. Ball also added four rebounds, while Guers had five rebounds, six assists and a pair of steals. Harrison Taggart joined them in double-figures with 15 points, while Chris Braley and Taylor Fortin chipped in seven points apiece with Fortin adding seven assists.
Le Moyne had five players reach double-figures in scoring led by 14 points apiece from Tanner Hyland and Daniel Kaigler.
The final three minutes were a battle as the lead changed hands several times over the final 180 seconds. Russell Sangster put the Dolphins in front at 64-63 with a layup, but Ball answered for the Hawks with a three-pointer.
After Hyland knotted the game at 66-66 with a jumper, Guers scored inside to give Saint Anselm the lead back at 68-66. Kaigler later tied the game with a layup, and Guers responded with a corner three to make it a 71-68 game.
Information for this release provided by the athletic communications staffs at Saint Anselm and Southern New Hampshire.
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.
