Skyhawks battle NEC regular season champions behind fifth-years, postgrad and senior efforts

Glidden totaled 14 points, seven rebounds, five assists and two blocks for the Skyhawks (PHOTO BY Bob Blanchard)

EASTON, Mass. (March 2, 2023) – Fairleigh Dickinson got three-straight stops midway through the fourth quarter and limited Stonehill College to eight fourth quarter points to escape with a 63-61 victory in Northeast Conference women's basketball action on Paula Sullivan Court at Merkert Gymnasium tonight.

Senior Sierra DeAngelo scored 19 of her game-high 21 points in the second half as she finished shooting 10-for-20 and added four rebounds for FDU. Junior Chloe Wilson finished just an assist shy of a triple-double, adding 11 points, a game-high 11 rebounds and nine assists, while senior Celia Carbonell and sophomore Ella Fajardo each chipped in ten points for the Knights.

Stonehill, which honored its four student-athletes playing their final collegiate games prior to the game, was led by the quartet tonight. Fifth-year Sophie Glidden filled the boxscore with 14 points, including eight in the second half, with seven rebounds, five assists, two blocked shots and a steal. Postgrad Maddie Loder and fifth-year Emily Bramanti each added 16 points. Loder scored ten of her 16 points in the first half, including eight in the first quarter as the Skyhawks staked out a nine-point lead after ten minutes, finishing 4-for-8 from three-point distance, while grabbing six rebounds. Bramanti scored nine of Stonehill's 13 second quarter points and added four boards.

Loder scored eight of her 16 points in the first quarter to lead the Skyhawks to a nine point lead (PHOTO BY Bob Blanchard)

Senior Mia Kelly rounded out Stonehill's Senior Night honorees and contributed a huge offensive rebound off her own miss and found Loder for an open three with 1:29 to go that pulled the Skyhawks within a point. Freshman Colleen McCullagh chipped in with a season-high nine rebounds.

Stonehill scored the final seven points of the first quarter, the final five by Loder who banked in a three at the buzzer to send the Skyhawks into the second frame with a nine-point cushion (19-10). Stonehill withstood a 14-2 FDU run in the second quarter, sparked by back-to-back threes by Fajardo, to carry the lead into halftime (32-30). Carbonell hit a three for a five-point lead (30-25) with 4:06 to play in the half, but the Skyhawks closed with seven-straight points, including consecutive Bramanti threes, to take a two-point lead into halftime.

Glidden stretched Stonehill's lead to four (34-30) to open the third quarter, but six-straight FDU points, including four by DeAngelo, reclaimed the lead for the visitors (38-36) three and a half minutes in. A full-on shooting slugfest ensued, with the teams trading the lead back and forth five times, with eight ties, over the next 12-minutes with neither team leading by more than a possession before FDU posted three-straight defensive stops to grab a four-point lead (62-58) after a DeAngelo layup with 3:53 left.

After two scoreless minutes, Loder's three off Kelly's hustle offensive board, pulled Stonehill back within a point (62-61) with 1:29 remaining. The Skyhawks had two possessions to grab the lead and claim the upset win, but was unable and FDU escaped with the win.

Stonehill honored Bramanti, Kelly, Glidden and Loder along with their families in a Senior Night ceremony before the game

Noteworthy

• Bramanti scored nine of her 16 points in the second quarter to spur the Skyhawks to a two-point halftime lead (PHOTO BY Bob Blanchard)

  Stonehill honored Bramanti, Glidden, Kelly and Loder and their families in a pregame Senior Night ceremony.
• Bramanti scored in double-figures for the 22^nd time this season (48^th career) and finishes her career with 1,084 points in 109 career games played – good for 31^st on Stonehill's career scoring list.
• Bramanti's two three-point field goals tonight give her 156 career threes to move up to eighth all-time. Her NEC-leading 69 three-pointers this season are ranked ninth on Stonehill's single-season list.
• Bramanti averaged 34.7 minutes per game this season – second in the NE10 – which is the sixth-best season average in Stonehill history.
• Glidden surpassed 500 career rebounds with her seven boards tonight, giving her 503 in 88 career games.
• Loder finished her season at Stonehill shooting 85.1-percent (57-for-67) from the free-throw line – good for ninth on Stonehill's single-season list.

Up Next
Stonehill finishes its inaugural NCAA Division I season with a 9-20 record overall, including 5-11 in its first Northeast Conference campaign. FDU (22-6, 14-2 NEC) will be the top seed for next week's NEC Tournament and will open with a quarterfinal round matchup with Central Connecticut State University on Monday, March 6.

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