Saints GNAC Semifinal Bound After 87-62 Victory Over Lasell
BOSTON - Emmanuel College Women’s Basketball (15-11, 11-3 GNAC) advanced to the semifinals of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Tournament with an 87-62 victory over the Lasell Lasers (15-9, 10-4 GNAC) Tuesday night on Andy Yosinoff Court.
BOSTON - Emmanuel College Women's Basketball (15-11, 11-3 GNAC) advanced to the semifinals of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Tournament with an 87-62 victory over the Lasell Lasers (15-9, 10-4 GNAC) Tuesday night on Andy Yosinoff Court.
Olivia Matela (Swampscott, Mass.) got the Saints started early with layup immediately following Kiera Eubanks' (Portland, Maine) tip-off win just a few seconds into the matchup. Minutes later, with the score knotted at eight, an acrobatic Paris Atuahene (Phoenix, Ariz.) layup sparked a run that lasted for the remainder of the first quarter. The home side outscored the Lasers 14-2 over the final seven minutes of play and took a 22-10 advantage into the second quarter.
Determined to close the gap, Lasell responded with a run of their own midway through the second quarter. Trailing by 15, Kiara Cerruti (Canton, Mass.) buried a shot from beyond the arc to begin a 17-6 run, cutting the Emmanuel lead to four at 33-29. Prior to the break, the Saints extended their lead back to seven to take a 38-31 advantage into halftime.
A Eubanks jump shot with 6:10 remaining in the third got the Saints lead back to double-digits. Emmanuel led by at least 10 throughout the remainder of the matchup. After 30 minutes, the Saints held on to a 59-46 lead as the two sides headed into the final frame of the night.
Looking to secure the quarterfinal victory, the Saints outscored the visitors 20-5 over the opening five minutes of the fourth quarter. The extended run was highlighted by a huge Matela three-pointer that all but put the game to bed as an energetic Saints crowd erupted. Emmanuel shot a game-best 64.3% from the floor in the final period to deliver an 87-62 victory and advance to the GNAC semifinals.
Emmanuel was led by first-year Meagan Schuermann (Cooperstown, N.Y.), who finished with 19 points and Olivia Matela, who added 16 points and six assists. Megan Reilly (Southbury, Conn.) nearly finished with a double-double, contributing nine points and nine assists. Kiara Cerruti scored a game-high 21 points for the Lasers in the loss.
The Saints' 87 points was good-enough for their third-highest scoring tilt of the season. A 50.8% shooting percentage marked the third consecutive game in which Emmanuel shot at least 50% from the field.
Up next, Emmanuel will hit the road for a GNAC semifinal at first-seeded St. Joseph's College (ME) on Thursday at a time to be determined. Lasell concludes their season with an overall record of 16-9.
