Box Score
NORTH ANDOVER, MA-Host Merrimack went 16-for-18 from the foul line throughout the final 6:28 to upend The College of Saint Rose 62-57 in a
Northeast-10 Conference encounter this evening at Bert Hammel Court. The Warriors bounced back from a 12-point deficit behind a 19-7 run during the middle stages of the second half and then made the most of their opportunities from the stripe to chalk up their fifth win in the last six games.
Junior center
Jess DeNicola went 8-for-11 from the floor and scored 15 of her 19 points in the second half despite picking up her fourth foul with 8:00 to go to pace the Golden Knights (8-8/3-7 NE-10). Junior guards
Jamie Hutcheson and
Gabie Polce scored nine points apiece.
Furthermore, senior guard Brittany O'Shea handed out a career-high 10 assists and added six points. Sophomore forward
Sarah Illingworth hauled in a game-high 10 rebounds, all from the defensive glass.
Saint Rose scored the final 10 points of the first half to go in the locker room up five, 29-24, at intermission and then opened the second stanza with an 8-1 jaunt that boosted its advantage to a dozen, 37-25, with 15:38 remaining. DeNicola scored all eight points to lead the charge.
The Warriors (8-6/4-5 NE-10) countered with their decisive run by limiting the Golden Knights to three field goals during an ensuing seven minute span. Junior forward Aria Johnson canned two free throws to tie the game, 44-44, with 6:04 to play. Johnson then finished in the paint to make it 48-46 Merrimack with 4:33 to go.
The Warriors never trailed again although the Golden Knights hung tough and got back to within a bucket, 57-55, with 48 seconds left after Hutcheson converted an O'Shea steal with a layup. However, Merrimack held Saint Rose without a field goal the rest of the way to close out the comeback.
Junior guard Chloe Rothman scored 13 points while Johnson and junior forward Melissa Miller had 11 and 10 respectively for the Warriors.
Looking ahead, both squads are back in action with conference dates this Saturday. The Golden Knights will host Southern New Hampshire at 1:30 pm. It is "Welcome Back Students Day" along with Sports Bingo presented by
Paesan's Pizza and Restaurant. The first 200 students in attendance for the league doubleheader receive a free slice of pizza. Meanwhile, Merrimack has a 12:00 pm date at Le Moyne in Syracuse.
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