SAINTS POUND WILDCATS ON SENIOR DAY
Feb. 20, 2010
BOSTON, Mass. - Emmanuel College (19-5, 10-2 GNAC) took care of the visiting Wildcats of Johnson & Wales University, 74-54, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Basketball match-up played in the Jean Yawkey Center on Saturday afternoon. The contest represented the last regular season home game for the four seniors on the Emmanuel women's hoop squad. Team manger Nick Landry and tri-captains Meredith Shaw, Abby Brenkach and Iman Davis were honored for their incredible careers prior to the start of the game.
After the senior day ceremony, Johnson & Wales (11-13, 7-5 GNAC) jumped out to a quick lead early in the game. The Wildcats held a 5-2 advantage after a jumper in the paint by Alexia Ramirez (San Marcos, Calif.). The visitors then pushed it to an 8-3 spread when Morgan Wilson (LaGrangeville, N.Y.) drained a triple.
A three from Breanna Ockimey (Philadelphia, Pa.) and an and-one by Iman Davis (Toms River, N.J.) made it a two-point game (10-8) at the 15-minute mark. A trey by Kristin LeBel (Tolland, Conn.) tied the contest at 14-all and forced a JWU time-out at the 10-minute mark.
Out of the time-out, Meredith Shaw (Yarmouth, Maine) hit back-to-back shots down low to give the Saints their first lead of the game. Shaw's hoops were part of a 9-0 Emmanuel run and the Saints led 20-14 with seven minutes to go in the half.
A pair of free throws by Abby Brenkach (Germantown, N.Y.) put Emmanuel up, 22-16, at the 5-minute mark. The hosts managed a double-digit lead after a three-ball from Chenae Earle (South Orange, N.J.) and a jumper by Jade Santos (Plymouth, Mass.) to go up 27-16 with three minutes left to play in the half.
A pair of free throws and a fast-break bucket by Tiaunna Nieves (Springfield, Mass.) stretched the EC lead to 31-18 with one minute remaining in the half. LeBel knocked down two foul shots to bring the score to 33-18 at the break.
The Saints' defense held the Wildcats to just two field goals over the final ten minutes of the first period. During this time, Emmanuel's offense went on a 22-4 run to turn a 3-point deficit into a 15-point lead at halftime. Brenkach led EC with 6 points and 4 rebounds, while Ramirez led JWU with 8 points and 8 boards at the break.
LeBel opened the second half with two tri-fectas and Brenkach and Shaw each hit big buckets in the low post to bring the score to 45-26 with 16 minutes left. Davis hit a lay-up on the break to cap a 17-8 run by the Saints and Emmanuel led 50-26.
A triple by Ramirez was part of a 12-4 Wildcat run to bring the spread to 54-38, forcing an Emmanuel time-out with 7:30 left to play in the game. The two teams traded baskets over the next two minutes and JWU called a full time-out with Emmanuel up, 63-43, with 5:17 on the clock.
The Saints maintained their solid double-digit lead for the final five minutes and came away with a 74-54 win. The Emmanuel seniors finished with 32 of the Saints' 74 points on senior day.
Shaw led the Saints with 13 points and 7 rebounds. Brenkach added 11 points and 6 boards. LeBel hit for 11 points, knocking down 3 of 4 from behind the arc. Davis netted 8 points, to go along with her team-high 11 rebounds and 6 assists. As a team, Emmanuel shot 41.7% (25-60) from the floor. JWU sent the Saints to the line 28 times and Emmanuel dropped 19 of their freebies (67.9%).
JWU was led by Ramirez's double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds. Allyson Dowen (Burlington, Vt.) added 11 points, while Brittany Harriot (Philadelphia, Pa.) chipped in with 10 points. Katurah Andrews (Hartford, Conn.) hauled in a game-high 16 boards for the visitors.
With today's win, Emmanuel has clinched the top seed in the upcoming GNAC Tournament. The Saints will host the 8th-seeded Raiders of Rivier College in the GNAC Quarterfinals on Tuesday night (2/23) at 7pm.