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| St. Thomas returned to the Final Four for the first time since 2012. Photo by Pat Coleman, D3sports.com |
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| This is a familiar sight at Amherst, which has reached the national semifinals seven times. Amherst athletics photo |
At halftime, one of the games was close, but by the end, there were four clear victors in the Division III women's basketball national quarterfinals, and only two unbeaten teams remaining for the 2017 season. The No. 1, No. 2 and No. 4 teams all advanced to the national semifinals.
Amherst jumped out to a 25-2 lead and made the final score academic as the top-ranked Purple and White defeated unranked Mass-Dartmouth 73-33. Amherst will be making its seventh trip to the Final Four, all under head coach G.P. Gromacki.
Eleven players reached the scoring column for Amherst (31-0), with Ali Doswell and Madeline Eck scoring 11 and Meredith Doswell and Jaimie Renner adding 10 apiece. The victors outrebounded Mass-Dartmouth 50-29 and limited the Corsairs to 13-for-50 shooting from the floor. Mass-Dartmouth's season ends at 25-6.
The No. 1 team will be facing Christopher Newport in the national semifinals. Christopher Newport could not be stopped from beyond the arc as the Captains defeated Ohio Northern, 76-66, ending the Polar Bears undefeated run and their shot at a national title. CNU returns to the Final Four for the first time since 2011.
CNU (29-2) went 13-for-28 from 3-point range and got 46 of its 76 points off the bench, led by Anitra Thomas and Micah Maloney with 13 apiece.
St. Thomas returned to the Final Four after a four-year absence, and made it look fairly easy in a win vs Whitman. The Blues trailed by double digits almost the entire second half as the Tommies cruised to a 65-48 win. Kaitlin Langer had a game-high 18 points, four blocks and a career-high 19 rebounds, while Lucia Renikoff went 3-for-4 from 3-point range en route to 14 points. St. Thomas improved to 31-0 for the first time in program history and have won 47 of their past 48 games.
"Kaitlin did a great job today. She was so balanced and so strong, and we talked about getting a couple of and-ones and she did," said Tommies coach Ruth Sinn. Langer was 10-for-12 from the foul line. "When she's balanced and strong and going through the contact like that, they're going to have to foul her."
The Tommies held Whitman to 0-for-15 shooting from 3-point range.
No. 6 Washington U. held its own at home against the vaunted Tufts defense, but could not withstand a quick offensive surge to start the second half. The fourth-ranked Jumbos extended a one-point halftime lead to eight, hitting their first four shots of the third period and the Bears never got closer. Michaela North had 20 points and 15 rebounds for the Jumbos, leading all players in a 57-43 win.
Amherst will play Christopher Newport and St. Thomas will play Tufts at the Division III women's basketball Final Four at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich., on Friday, March 17. The semifinals are at 5 and 7:30 p.m. ET. Who will be playing in which semifinal will be announced on Sunday afternoon.