EMMANUEL DROPS RIVIER IN GNAC QUARTERFINALS
Feb. 23, 2010
BOSTON, Mass. - The top-seeded Emmanuel Women's Basketball Team knocked off the 8th-seeded Raiders of Rivier College, 68-60, in the quarterfinal round of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Tournament on Tuesday night. The Saints' defense forced 25 Raider turnovers and senior guard Iman Davis (Toms River, N.J.) finished with 18 points and 10 boards to lead the hosts. Tonight's win was the 20th of the season for the Saints (20-5), who now own a streak of 10-straight 20-win seasons. Rivier finished the season at 15-10 overall.
To open the game, the Raiders poured in back-to-back three-pointers from the left wing to take a quick 6-0 lead. Emmanuel answered with a triple from Kristin LeBel (Tolland, Conn.) and a lay-up by Abby Brenkach (Germantown, N.Y.) to bring the margin to 6-5. Another Rivier trey by Amanda Purcell (Hudson, N.H.) pushed it to a 15-7 Raider lead with 12 minutes remaining in the half.
LeBel hit another three for the Saints and EC trailed 15-13 at the 10-minute mark. LeBel then found a cutting Davis to tie the game at 15-all. The two teams traded baskets over the next four minutes, before consecutive hoops in the paint by Jess Mellen (Rockland, Mass.) gave the Raider a 24-21 edge at the five-minute mark.
The next three minutes of action featured three lead changes before consecutive three-balls from Tiaunna Nieves (Springfield, Mass.) and Breanna Ockimey (Philadelphia, Pa.) gave Emmanuel a 36-28 lead with one minute left to play in the half. A lay-up and a pair of free throws from Davis stretched the margin to double-figures for the Saints, before fast break trey by Lauren Brett (Otisfield, Maine) brought Rivier to within 9 points at the break, 40-31.
Davis led all scorers at halftime with 15 points and 6 rebounds. LeBel added 6 first-half points for the Saints, which out-rebounded the Raiders 20-15 in the opening 20 minutes. Mellen was the high-scorer for the Raiders with 8 points and 4 rebounds at halftime.
Each team scored just one field goal in the three minutes, which opened the second frame. Davis hit 1 of 2 free throws for the Saints at the 15-minute mark and Emmanuel held a 47-35 lead. The hosts maintained their double-figure advantage through the 11-minute mark and Rivier called for a full time-out after a LeBel jumper on the break pushed the Saints' lead to 58-43.
A long-range shot by Brett and a pair of freebies from Monica White (Augusta, Maine) cut Rivier's deficit to 61-54 with just under 6 minutes to play. Another Brett trey cut the margin to six points (63-57) at the five-minute mark. An Emmanuel lay-up by Pamela Mobley (Worcester, Mass.) and another free throw from White at the opposite end brought the score to 65-58 at the two-minute mark.
Mellen hit a deep jumper for the Raiders to bring Rivier to within five points and the visitors called a thirty with 1:01 on the clock. LeBel knocked down three of four from the line down the stretch and Emmanuel held on for the 68-60 win.
Davis finished with a game-high 18 points on 7-19 shooting. She also hauled in 10 boards for a double-double and collected a game-high 5 steals. LeBel kicked in 11 points, while dishing out 4 assists for the Saints. Freshman forward Fiona O'Dwyer (Stamford, Conn.) played huge minutes off the bench for Emmanuel, scoring 8 points in 19 minutes of action.
Mellen led a trio of Raiders scoring in double-figures. Mellen hit 7 of 12 from the floor and recorded a double-double with a game-high 17 rebounds, while dishing out 5 assists. White finished with 15 points on 4 for 9 shooting, while Mackenzie Brooks (Colebrook, N.H.) chipped in with 11 points in the effort.
On the other side of the bracket, 5th-ranked Simmons upset 4th-ranked Emerson, 85-68. Emmanuel will now host the Simmons College Sharks on Thursday night (2/25) in the GNAC Semifinals. The game is scheduled to tip off at 7pm. In other GNAC Quarterfinal action, \#2 Norwich dropped \#7 Johnson & Wales (80-62) and \#3 Albertus Magnus edged \#6 Suffolk (82-81).