Collins Records Double-Double Effort Of 16 Points And 13 Rebounds To Lead Quartet In Double Figures As 15th-Ranked Women's Basketball Collects Fifth Straight Victory With 78-51 Northeast-10 Triumph Over Saint Anselm

January 3, 2007

STONEHILL WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

Wednesday, January 3, 2007

Merkert Gymnasium, Easton, Massachusetts

FINAL: STONEHILL 78, SAINT ANSELM 51

EASTON, Mass.-- Senior Alisha Collins (Port Chester, N.Y.) notched a double-double effort of 16 points and 13 rebounds to lead four players in double figures as 15th-ranked Stonehill claimed its fifth straight victory with a 78-51 Northeast-10 Conference women's basketball triumph over Saint Anselm Wednesday evening at Merkert Gymnasium.

The host Skyhawks (12-2, 7-2 Northeast-10) raced out to an early 15-point advantage at 21-6, but the visiting Hawks (4-9, 1-7 Northeast-10) whittled that margin down to four points by scoring 13 of the game's next 15 points over a 4:19 stretch. Stonehill responded with a 15-2 run of its own to regain a 15-point edge before settling for a 39-27 lead at the break, and the hosts scored 17 of the first 24 points following intermission to take a 22-point lead with 11:54 remaining, building that margin to as much as 29 points in the closing minutes.

Senior Caitlin Kennedy (Baldwin, N.Y.) added 14 points for the winners, who also received 10 points and seven assists from senior Tiffany Huggins (Stoughton, Mass.) as well as 10 points and nine rebounds from sophomore Bethany Tighe (North Easton, Mass.). Freshman Megan Methven (Corning, N.Y.) chipped in with nine points for the Skyhawks, who also received seven points from junior Meghan Driscoll (Bridgewater, Mass.) and six rebounds from junior Daryl Cioffi (New Milford, N.J.) as Stonehill held a whopping 52-26 rebounding advantage for the evening, including a commanding 29-7 edge on the offensive glass alone that led to 25 second chance points. The hosts shot 40 percent overall and scored 23 points off of 25 Saint Anselm turnovers to post their 45th victory in 64 series meetings between the schools.

Senior Jessica Morgan (West Lebanon, N.H.) led the Hawks in the scoring column with 16 points, while junior Cassaundra Thorpe (Portsmouth, R.I.) added 10 points for Saint Anselm, which also received seven points from senior Christina Buckley (Levittown, N.Y.). The visitors shot 38 percent from the field overall, including a 33 percent effort after intermission.

Stonehill travels to Colchester, Vt. on Saturday afternoon to take on Saint Michael's in a Northeast-10 outing that tips-off at 1:30 p.m., while Saint Anselm heads to Lowell, Mass. on Saturday afternoon to take on UMass Lowell in a Northeast-10 contest that begins at 2:00 p.m.