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Bethany Tighe had six points and seven rebounds in the 67-42 win over Merrimack. |
North Andover, Mass. - 13th-ranked Stonehill used another smothering defensive effort this time holding the host Merrimack Warriors to 17 second half points in a convincing 67-42 win at the Volpe Gymnasium Thursday evening.
With the win the Skyhawks improve to 13-2 overall and 9-1 in Northeast-10 action.
Stonehill forced 18 turnovers and held the hosts to a frigid 28 percent shooting for the game.
With the scored knotted at 23-23, Stonehill closed the half on an 11-2 run to take a 34-25 lead into intermission.
While they were turning up the defense in the second half, the Skyhawks were getting interior baskets off of layups and putbacks, outscoring the Warriors 16-4 in the paint in the final 20 minutes.
After Merrimack got a triple from Amanda Shannon, a short jumper from Gately Golden, and a hoop from Kara Borelli to trim the lead to 34-32 minutes into the second half, Stonehill held the Warriors scoreless for the next five minutes as they ran off 12 points to move their lead to 44-32.
Two baskets by Merrimack were followed by another Stonehill spurt, this one a 16-2 spree that saw Ashley Caiafa (Massapequa, N.Y.) and Megan Methven (Corning, N.Y.) make three pointers, and Kelsey Simonds (Middleboro, Mass.) and Bethany Tighe (North Easton, Mass.) get easy baskets.
For the game, Stonehill shot 51 percent from the field and 47 percent from behind the arc.
Simonds led three players in double figures with 13 points, nine rebounds, and two blocks. Methven also had 13 in just 19 minutes, while Erika Stupinski (Topsham, Maine) had 10 points, six assists and four rebounds.
Freshmen Kristen McWhirter (Melvin Village, N.H.) and Caiafa led the Skyhawk bench attack scoring seven and eight points respectively. McWhirter chipped in with five rebounds and four assists, while Caiafa dropped in a pair of threes.
Stonehill returns to action on Wednesday when they host American International at Merkert Gymnasium.