Senior Paige Marshall led the Skyhawks with 20 points, nine rebounds and six assists. (PHOTO BY Peter Buehner) |
Greyhounds score 55 second half points behind balanced scoring
WORCESTER, Mass. (November 18, 2015) – Assumption College, among teams receiving votes in the USA TODAY Sports/Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division II poll and ranked third in the D2SIDA East Regional poll, pulled away in the second half to claim an 85-72 victory over Stonehill College, also receiving votes nationally and ranked No. 1 in the region, in the Northeast-10 Conference women's basketball opener for both at Laska Gymnasium tonight.
Senior Kelly Conley (Ellington, Connecticut/Ellington) led a balanced Assumption effort with 15 points, aided by 8-for-8 shooting from the free-throw line, to go with two rebounds, two assists and a steal. Junior Allison Stoddard (East Lyme, Connecticut/East Lyme) added 13 points, connecting on 3-of-6 three-pointers, with seven assists and two steals, while classmate Kelly Carey (Long Beach, New York/Holy Trinity) registered 12 points on 3-of-6 shooting, including 3-for-5 from three-point range, with two rebounds and two assists.
Senior Paige Marshall (Braintree, Massachusetts/Braintree) and junior Kelly Martin (Scituate, Massachusetts/Scituate) combined for 38 points as the lone double-figure scorers for Stonehill as they shot a combined 14-for-30 (46.7-percent) from the field, while the remainder of the team was just 11-for-32 (34.4%). Marshall scored a game and season-high 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including 2-for-3 from three-point distance, while converting all four free-throw attempts to go with a game-high nine rebounds and six assists. Martin added 18 points on 7-of-20 shooting, just 1-for-7 from three, going 3-for-4 from the line, with six rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Junior Kelly Martin added 18 points, six rebounds, two assists and two steals. (PHOTO BY Peter Buehner) |
Sophomore Courtney Walsh (Windham, New Hampshire/Central Catholic) contributed eight points, while senior Shannon Brown (Las Vegas, Nevada/Centennial) chipped in seven points and seven boards.
Assumption shot 44.6-percent from the field, including 9-for-20 (45%) from three-point distance, connecting on 53.1-percent (17-32) in the second half, including 5-for-8 (62.5%) from beyond the arc, converting 18-of-23 (78.3%) free-throws for the night. Stonehill was limited to 40.3% shooting (25-for-62), including 6-for-22 (27.3%) from long distance, going 5-for-14 (35.7%) from deep in the second half. The Skyhawks held a 41-38 rebounding edge, but committed 19 turnovers which resulted in a 20-9 Greyhounds advantage in points off turnovers. Assumption's bench also outscored the Stonehill reserves 31-12.
Stonehill held a 31-30 halftime lead, but after the teams traded baskets to open the third quarter, Conley drained a three-pointer to put Assumption up two (35-33) a minute and a half in. A Marshall triple pulled the Skyhawks back within two and then Martin converted a three point play to regain the lead (41-39) with 6:36 left in the third.
Stonehill led by four (45-41) after a jumper by freshman Nicole Rojas (Cromwell, Connecticut/Cromwell) with 4:36 left in the quarter. Assumption answered with seven straight points to reclaim the lead (48-45) with 2:19 left in the quarter. Conley pushed the lead to four (51-47) with a three-pointer with 1:43 remaining and the advantage stretched to six (53-47) following a sophomore Teneya McLaughlin (Milford, Connecticut/Joseph A. Foran) basket before settling for a three-point edge at the break.
Consecutive three-pointers from Stoddard and Carey to open the fourth quarter pushed the Assumption lead to nine (59-50). The Greyhounds lead reached 12 (66-54) after a McLaughlin three ball with 7:52 to play and then 16 (72-56) with a jumper by junior Morgan O'Brien (Reading, Massachusetts/Reading) with 5:11 remaining. Stonehill made a push late, drawing within nine (81-72) on a Martin three-pointer with 41-seconds on the clock, but the Greyhounds were able to seal the win at the free-throw line from there.
Stonehill (2-1, 0-1 NE-10) is back on the court on Saturday when it hosts Saint Anselm College for its first home game of the season at Merkert Gymnasium at 1:30 p.m. Assumption (3-0, 1-0 NE-10) visits Saint Michael's College on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.
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