Junior Mary Louise Dixon led the Skyhawks with 15 points, six rebounds and five assists. (PHOTO BY Bert Lane)

Skyhawks hold Greyhounds under 29-percent shooting for key win

EASTON, Mass. (January 15, 2013) – Stonehill College, who moved up six spots to No. 17 in this week's USA TODAY Sports/Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division II poll, turned in its best defensive performance of the season to claim a key 57-44 triumph over Assumption College, among teams receiving votes nationally, in Northeast-10 Conference women's basketball action at Merkert Gymnasium tonight.

Junior Mary Louise Dixon (Wellesley, Mass./Wellesley) was the lone Stonehill player in double-figures, leading a balanced offensive effort with 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field, connecting on her lone three point attempt, and converting both free-throw attempts to go with six rebounds, five assists and a steal. Sophomore Tori Faieta (Lynn, Mass./Saint Mary's) added nine points on 4-of-8 shooting, including a three-pointer, with five rebounds and four blocked shots, while classmate Jamie Panton (Essex Junction, Vt./Essex) posted nine points on 3-of-6 shooting, including a turnaround half court buzzer-beater to end the first half, three assists, a blocked shot and steal. Junior Asia Ewing (Westford, Mass./Westford Academy) pulled down a game-high matching ten rebounds to go with four points, five blocked shots and three assists.

Stonehill held Assumption to 28.4-percent (19-for-67) shooting from the field, including 19.4% (6-31) in the first half, and just 2-for-13 (15.4%) from three-point range as the Skyhawks blocked ten shots in the contest and forced ten turnovers. The Skyhawks finished with a 43-41 rebounding edge, and shot 41.8% (23-55) from the field, including 46.2% (12-26) in the second half to pull away, while connecting on 6-of-15 (40%) three-pointers.

Senior Gabrielle Gibson (Amityville, N.Y./Copaigue) led Assumption with a game-high 18 points on 7-of-19 shooting, including 2-for-5 from three-point range, while converting 2-of-3 free-throws to go with six rebounds. Classmate Sabrina Siciliano (Fairfield, Conn./Fairfield-Warde) posted a double-double with 12 points and ten rebounds (five offensive), shooting 6-for-15 from the field, and three steals.

Sophomore Tori Faieta contributed nine points, five rebounds and four blocked shots. (PHOTO BY Bert Lane)

Assumption posted a 14-4 advantage in points off turnovers and a 17-11 edge in second chance points. Stonehill connected on 5-of-6 (83.3%) free-throws on the night, while the Greyhounds were 4-for-11 (36.4%) at the stripe.

The teams combined for just 15 points through the first ten minutes before Stonehill started to earn some breathing room with an 8-0 run over five minutes to turn a one point (9-8) deficit into a seven point cushion (16-9) after a layup from freshman Paige Marshall (Braintree, Mass./Braintree) with 4:58 left in the half. Pelletier and Dixon sparked the run with three-pointers for the Skyhawks.

Stonehill stretched the lead to eight points (21-13) with a basket from sophomore Ashley Gendron (Auburn, N.H./Manchester Memorial) with 3:24 remaining. Assumption closed within four (21-17) after a layup by Siciliano with 2:31 to go, but Stonehill scored the final nine points of the half to take a 13 point lead (30-17) into halftime after Panton's half court buzzer-beater.

Stonehill pushed the lead to 17 (38-21) on a Panton layup five minutes into the second half. Assumption responded with an 11-2 run to close within eight (40-32) after a Siciliano basket with 10:34 remaining. That would be as close as the Greyhounds would get as Stonehill reeled off a 17-4 clinching run to take a 21 point lead (57-36) with a Faieta layup with 4:59 on the clock. Six straight points from Dixon and seven from Faieta keyed the run for the Skyhawks.

Stonehill are now winners of five straight and improve to 8-0 at home with the win. The Skyhawks are now two full games clear Assumption, Franklin Pierce University and UMass Lowell who are tied for third place, holding the head-to-head tiebreaker over all three.

Stonehill (13-1, 9-1 NE-10) hits the road for a pair of games starting Saturday at Le Moyne College at 1 p.m. The Skyhawks return home on Saturday, January 26, to host Southern Connecticut State University at 1:30 p.m. Assumption (10-4, 7-3 NE-10) hosts Saint Anselm College on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.

For the latest on Stonehill Athletics, follow the Skyhawks via social media on Twitter and Facebook. Fans can also download the Stonehill Skyhawks mobile app on iTunes and the Android Market.