|
| Ryan O’Neill should never have to say he’s sorry about scoring points. Photo by Pete Meshanic, d3photography.com | More photos from this game |
The New York University women and St. Joseph (Conn.) men rang out the old year with wins over tough opponents in Division III basketball action on Friday afternoon.
New York University’s super sophomore Belle Pellecchia came up big late to lift the Violets over Bowdoin, 78-75. The Polar Bears led 75-74 until Brooklyn Shelton caught an errant Bowdoin pass and found Pellecchia who was streaking down the court for the go-ahead layup with under two minutes to play. Bowdoin lost the ball on its next possession and Pellecchia drove to the rim with the shot clock running down, drew the foul, and hit both free throws.
Pellecchia finished with 22 points and Natlie Bruns flirted with a double-double (18 points, eight rebounds) for NYU, which will have conference games the rest of the way. Sydney Jones scored 28 points for Bowdoin (8-2).
No. 7 Scranton used balanced scoring to beat No. 19 Tufts, 68-59, in the finale of Steven’s holiday tournament. Scranton opened the fourth quarter with a one-point lead that turned into a double-digit advantage when the Lady Royals shut out the Jumbos for the first five minutes of the period. Samantha Rajza opened the scoring for Scranton in that period with a three, and then Kaci Kranson followed with two layups. Kranson scored 18, Rajza 13 and Hannah Angelini 15 for Scranton (12-0). Molly Russell scored 28 and grabbed 14 rebounds for Tufts (8-3).
No. 8 Baldwin Wallace rallied past Hamilton, 72-65, to win its holiday tournament. The Yellow Jackets held Hamilton to 4-for-15 shooting and outscored the Continentals 22-12 in the final period. Bella Vaillant notched a double-double (12 points, 10 rebounds) for Baldwin Wallace (11-0) while Taylor Lambo rolled up 28 points for Hamilton (7-2).
No. 4 Christopher Newport stayed red hot and rolled over Rowan, 93-60, for its 12th win in a row. All-American Sondra Fan scored 14 points with a perfect showing from the field (4 for 4) and foul line (5 for 5) in the third quarter. She finished with 16 points in 20 minutes for the Captains.
Trinity (Conn.) returned from the holiday break with an impressive 58-45 win at No. 13 Springfield. Reilly Campbell posted 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Bantams who outrebounded the Pride 52-29. Loras also bolstered his case to enter the Top 25 with an emphatic 85-58 win over UW-Stevens Point. The Duhawks have won five in a row, including three wins over ranked foes.
In men’s action, No. 1 St. Joseph scored enough to beat No. 14 WPI 67-55 in a showdown between the two stingiest defenses in Division III men’s basketball. The Blue Jays used a 12-0 run midway through the second half to take a 50-37 lead and St. Joseph led by double-digits much of the rest of the way. Scoring means never having to say you’re sorry – Ryan O’Neill led the Blue Jays with 21 points.
The most exciting men’s game of the day took place in Lexington, Virginia where No. 20 Mary Washington outlasted Washington and Lee, 103-95, in double overtime. Freshman Dorian Davis rescued the Eagles with a game-tying three near the end of the first overtime period, and then Mary Washington took the lead in double overtime by making eight straight free throws. Greg Rowson scored 27 points, including the 1,000th of his career, and Da’Shawn Cook added 22 more in 47 minutes for Mary Washington (11-2).
No. 8 John Carroll rebounded from Thursday’s loss to UW-Superior with an 83-78 overtime win over Skidmore in Florida. The Blue Streaks were scoreless from three (0-for-8) but made up for it at the foul line where they went 27 for 33. Luke Frazier tallied 25 points including 11 free throws in as many attempts. Tautvydas Kupstsas scored 19 for Skidmore, which drove to Florida from Upstate New York because of air travel problems.
Berry got double-doubles from Chase Ellis and Michael Johnson and 19 points from Blake Campbell as the Vikings knocked off No. 16 Emory, 79-74. Campbell hit five consecutive free throws in the final 43 seconds to seal the win for Berry.
No. 17 Johns Hopkins edged past Joe 78-77 in Nashville on Brian Johansson’s three-pointer with 36 seconds left. Tom Quarry and John Windley combined for 47 points for the Blue Jays (8-2). The Blue Jays led for more than 34 minutes but found themselves down 77-73 with 1:43 to play. Windley hit one of two free throws, followed by a 1-for-2 showing by Johansson and the deficit was two with 47 seconds left. JHU took advantage of an offensive board off the miss and Johansson drained a three to stake the Blue Jays to a one-point lead. The Kohawks couldn’t convert on two possessions in the final 36 seconds and the Jays took the win.