February 24, 2009
WBB: DOLPHINS CLINCH EIGHTH SEED DESPITE 46-45 LOSS AT SO.
CONNECTICUT STATE
New Haven, Conn. - Senior Allyson Smith scored 16 points, including
11 in the second half, to lead Southern Connecticut State to a
46-45 come-from-behind Northeast-10 Conference victory over the Le
Moyne College women's basketball team on Tuesday night at Moore
Field House. Despite the loss, the Dolphins clinch the eighth seed
in the upcoming Northeast-10 tournament.
Smith, playing in her final collegiate game, led all scorers with
her 16 points, while also recording three rebounds and three
steals. Junior forward Courtney Coryea (Mooers Forks,
N.Y./Northeast Clinton) led the Dolphins with 14 points
and 11 rebounds as the only other player to register double figures
in the contest. Senior forward Vanessa Holden (Suffern,
N.Y./Immaculate Heart (N.J.)) tallied nine points and
eight rebounds.
The Owls tallied eight straight points over the opening 3:09 of the
second half to pull within three points. Smith recorded five points
in the span, while Sarah Schicher added a conventional three-point
play. After senior guard Katie Dunn (Whippany, N.J./Morris
Catholic/Holy Family) hit a pair of foul shots to extend
Le Moyne's lead back to five, Smith hit a layup and Alex Fiola
connected on two foul shots to pull to within 35-34 with 12:41
remaining. Coryea responded with four straight points as the
Dolphins regained a five-point edge.
Jacqueline Johannes scored five straight points for the Owls to tie
the game at 39 apiece. Dunn connected on one of two foul shots with
7:20 remaining to give the Dolphins their final lead of the game.
While Le Moyne was passing the ball from out-of-bounds from
underneath its own basket, Smith tipped the attempt away, collected
the ball and hit the fast-break layup to give the Owls the lead.
Two possessions later, Fiola hit a three-pointer and Logan Lentz
followed two minutes later with a jumper to put the Owls up 46-40
with 2:29 remaining in the contest. Junior guard Siobhan
Shields (Mason, N.H./St. Bernard's Catholic Central) hit a
pair of free throws and Holden drilled a three-pointer from the top
of the key to pull the Dolphins to 46-45 with 1:38 remaining.
Following a turnover on the Owls with 1:!3 left, Holden had an
attempt to give the Dolphins the lead, but Schicher blocked the
shot. The Dolphins forced a shot clock violation with just under
eight seconds remaining, but Smith stole the ball five seconds
later to secure the victory.
The two squads traded baskets over the opening ten minutes of the
contest to deliver a 10-10 tie. Smith put the Owls ahead with a
three-pointer before made a layup and sophomore guard
Danielle Felice (Adams, N.Y./South Jefferson)
recorded a conventional three-point play for a 15-13 lead. Southern
Connecticut regained the lead on its next possession on a
three-pointer by Fiola .
The Dolphins tallied seven straight points to close the half on a
16-4 run to take a 31-20 lead at the half. Second-year graduate
student Jacquelin Precious (Fonthill, Ontario/Governor
Simcoe/St. Peter's College) hit a shot from three-point
range to start the streak, while Coryea made a layup as time
expired.
Le Moyne (15-12, NE-10 12-10), which closed the regular season with
seven wins in its final 10 games, opens the Northeast-10 tournament
on Sunday, March 1 against ninth-seeded Southern New Hampshire at
2:00 p.m. The Dolphins defeated the Penman, 54-49, on January 3rd
in the two team's only meeting of the season.
-agate-
Southern
Connecticut State 46, Le Moyne 45
Le Moyne (15-12, NE-10
12-10)
31
14
-
45
So. Connecticut St. (7-20, NE-10
4-18)
20
26
- 46
