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Megan Methven scored 17 of her game-high 25 points in the second half. |
North Easton, Mass. - Sophomore Megan Methven (Corning, N.Y.) scored 17 of her season-high 25 points in the second half, including three of her five three pointers helping Stonehill overcome a sluggish start to post a 66-60 win over Northeast-10 foe Assumption on Tuesday night at Merkert Gymnasium.
The Skyhawks, who now sit at 7-0 overall and 4-0 in Conference action, entered the game with a No. 22 national ranking in the latest ESPN/USA Today Division II Coaches Poll.
After trailing by as many as 11 midway through the first half, Stonehill scrapped back despite shooting just 40 percent from the field and took the lead for good at 47-46 on a Methven triple with seven minutes to go.
A short jumper from the Greyhounds' Molly Griffiths trimmed the Skyhawks lead to one, but the Skyhawks got three huge plays from senior Erika Stupinski (Topsham, Maine).
She found Kelsey Simonds (Middleboro, Mass.) for a layup on Stonehill's next possession, collected a steal on Assumption's subsequent trip down court and then found Methven for a easy deuce to give the Skyhawks their biggest lead at 53-48.
Assumption closed to within three on two occasions with less than three minutes to play on two free throws and a inside basket from Charde Floyd, but each time the Skyhawks responded, first on a layup by Methven off of a Stupinski feed and then three combined free throws from Simonds and Methven.
Stonehill opened the game shooting an icy 32 percent in the first half but stay closed, trailing only 26-22 at the half, in part because of the fact that half of their eight first half baskets came from behind the arc. Things heated up in the second half, however, behind Methven and Simonds, as the duo scored 27 of the 44 Skyhawk points in the final 20 minutes.
Stupinski scored a season-high 14 points and handed eight assists while committing a season-low two turnovers. Simonds finished with 12 points and nine rebounds and Bethany Tighe (North Easton, Mass.) added 10 points and six rebounds.
The Greyhounds held a 40-31 advantage on the boards, aided by Floyd's 18-point, nine rebound, five-assist night. Kayla Parker added 14 points and seven boards as that pair went a combined 12-for-19 from the floor.
Stonehill returns to action on Thursday when they travel to St. Rose for a matchup with the Golden Knights.