AMHERST, N.Y. – Senior Leah McDonell (North Tonawanda, N.Y./Cardinal O'Hara) scored 13 of her team-high 17 points in the second half to lead Daemen College to a clutch 70-50 victory over regionally-ranked Molloy College here today in East Coast Conference women's basketball action.
Daemen, which has now won seven of its last eight homes games, snapped a two-game losing streak and improved to 11-13 overall and 8-8 in the ECC. Molloy, which is ranked fifth in the latest NCAA Division II East Region poll, has now lost four of its last five games and dropped to 18-8 overall and 10-6 in the league. Molloy remained winless (0-4) at Lumsden Gymnasium since Daemen joined the ECC in 2013-14.
The win, combined with LIU-Post's 76-56 loss to Queens College, gives Daemen sole possession of sixth place in the league standings with two games to play. The top six teams advance to the ECC Championship Tournament, which begins March. 1. Daemen is looking to make its first-ever appearance in the league championship tournament.
It also marked the second time this season the Wildcats have defeated a regionally-ranked team. Daemen's 72-68 win at the University of Bridgeport on Dec. 10 marked the first time since the Wildcats joined the ECC that they have knocked off a regionally-ranked team. UB entered that game riding a seven-game winning streak and ranked fourth in the region.
Daemen got contributions from several players today. McDonell added four rebounds, four assists and five steals to her stat line. Freshman Jordan Heinold (Hamburg, N.Y./Immaculata) returned to the lineup after missing Wednesday's loss at St. Thomas Aquinas and totaled 12 points (3-for-6 from downtown) and seven rebounds. Senior Jesse DeWaters (Lockport, N.Y./Niagara County CC) went 4-for-4 from the field and totaled 10 points, while classmate Natalie Galus (Hamburg, N.Y./Frontier) also netted 10 points in 25 minutes off the bench.
Junior Sarah Saba (Lancaster, N.Y./Lancaster) narrowly missed a double-double, as she netted nine points and hauled in a team-high 10 rebounds. Freshman point guard Carina Pringle (Rochester, N.Y./Greece Athena) played a team-high 36 minutes, committed just one turnover and contributed seven points, four assists and three steals.
Graduate student Kamala Thompson (Selden, N.Y.) totaled 17 points and 12 rebounds for the Lions, while sophomore guard Ihnacinse Grady (Amityville, N.Y.) added 10 points and two steals.
A fast-paced first quarter saw the teams trade baskets for the first six minutes, before Daemen opened up a 13-8 lead following two free throws by Heinold and a jumper by Pringle. The teams combined for just six points the rest of the quarter, and Daemen took a 15-12 lead into the second quarter.
Molloy opened the second quarter with back-to-back three-pointers by Thompson and freshman Kathryn Gibson (Neponsit, N.Y.), but Daemen responded with an 18-6 run over the next six minutes. The run featured four three pointers by four different players, and a triple by Pringle with 2:21 left in the half capped the spurt and gave the hosts a 33-24 lead. Daemen would take a 34-24 lead into the break.
The Daemen lead was nine points, 37-28, when the Wildcats scored six-straight. A steal and layup by McDonell 3:13 into the quarter capped the spurt and gave the hosts a 15-point lead, 43-28. Two free throws by Thompson with 5:23 left in the quarter cut the lead to 12 points, 45-33, but a three-pointer by Heinold at the other end sparked the Wildcats on a quarter-ending 10-1 blitz. A buzzer-beating three-pointer by McDonell capped the run and gave the hosts a 55-34 lead.
Daemen extended the run at the start of the fourth quarter, outscoring the Lions 9-4 over the first three minutes of the frame. A steal by Pringle led to another fast-break layup by McDonell and a 64-38 lead with 7:20 left to play. The lead eventually went to 27 points, 70-43, following a jumper by Pringle with just over three minutes left.
Daemen shot an efficient 50-percent (12-for-24) from the field in the first half and finished 25-for-56 (45%) from the field overall. Daemen, which entered the game ranked second among ECC teams in three-pointers made per game (7.1), connected on 10-of-24 from downtown and is now 100-for-248 (.403) from behind the arc over its 11 home games this season. The Wildcats connected on 10-of-13 free throws in the game. Molloy struggled to score all game and finished just 19-of-65 (29%) from the field overall and 6-of-24 from three-point land. The Lions connected on 6-of-11 from the charity stripe.
Molloy posted a 45-36 edge in total rebounds, including a 20-8 advantage in offensive rebounds which led to a 12-4 edge in second chance points for the visitors. Daemen forced the Lions into 20 turnovers, and the Wildcats converted those mistakes into a 22-12 advantage in points off turnovers.
Daemen returns to action Wednesday (Feb. 22) when it hosts nationally-ranked Queens College in a league game. Queens. which has already claimed the ECC regular-season title and top seed in the ECC Tournament, posted a 75-40 win over the Wildcats earlier this year in Flushing, N.Y.
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