| Skidmore earned a hard-fought victory over Johns Hopkins at the Tufts regional on Friday night. Photo by Steve LaBonte, d3photography.com |
Skidmore rallied from a 13-point fourth quarter deficit to beat Johns Hopkins while UW-Oshkosh lost its 13-point lead but then came back to tip Washington and Lee. Elsewhere, Marietta won a thriller in Upstate New York, Wartburg ousted Baldwin Wallace, and the SUNYAC went 2-0 in the first round of the 2023 NCAA Division III women's basketball tournament.
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- Game of the night: Coverage to come
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Skidmore started its game against Johns Hopkins down 10-0 and trailed by 13 in the fourth quarter, but the Thoroughbreds raced past the Blue Jays, 62-59, and in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Johns Hopkins looked like it was in control when Michaela O’Neil hit a three-pointer that put the Blue Jays in front 47-34 with nine minutes to play. The Thoroughbreds responded with a 7-0 spurt capped by Andi Levitz’s three-pointer.
Olivia Parisi made two free throws that kept Johns Hopkins in front 59-53 with three minutes to play before the Thoroughbreds mounted their final rally. Julia Blanck hit a jumper, Madison Meyer made two free throws and Kate McCarney scored a layup that tied the game at 59. After an empty JHU possession, Levitz split a pair of free throws that put Skidmore ahead by one. Johns Hopkins drove to the rim on its next possession, but Blank swatted the potential game winning shot and grabbed the rebound. Blanck was fouled and made two more free throws to seal the win.
Blanck finished with 20 points and 13 rebounds for Skidmore (23-5), which earned its first NCAA Tournament victory in three tries. The Thoroughbreds take on Tufts tomorrow night since the Jumbos took care of Merchant Marine, 72-52.
UW-Oshkosh also lost a 13-point lead and trailed Washington and Lee late, but Jenna Jorgensen splashed home a three-pointer in the closing seconds to lift the Titans over the Generals, 58-55. Jorgensen started the fourth quarter with a three that put the Titans in front 49-36. The Generals scored the next 13 points with Mary Schleusner tying the game at 49 with a jump shot midway through the quarter. Schleusner struck again with a three-point play that put Washington and Lee in front 55-53 and that remained the score until the Titans got the ball off an over-and-back violation with 11 seconds to play.
UW-Oshkosh called time out, found Jorgensen opened on the sideline and she drained the game-winning shot. The Generals were whistled for a foul as time expired and Kennedy Osterman added two free throws to finish the scoring.
Jorgensen paced UW-Oshkosh (20-8) with 17 points while Schleusner was outstanding in defeat, racking up 19 points and 21 rebounds for Washington and Lee (22-7).
There was more neutral court drama in Upstate New York where Hannah Schill came off the bench and led Marietta past Eastern Connecticut, 61-57. Eastern Connecticut held a 54-51 lead after Julie Keckler drained a three-pointer with 2:14 to play in the fourth quarter. Devin Hefner made two free throws for Marietta and then, after a missed shot by the Warriors, Schill converted a three-point play that put the Pioneers in front, 59-57. Eastern Connecticut had the ball with a chance to tie when Schill came on a double team, stole the ball away and raced down the floor for a layup that iced the game.
Schill scored 18 points on 8-for-11 shooting in 24 minutes for Marietta (21-7). Anna Barry capped her stellar career with 32 points, 14 rebounds and two blocks for Eastern Connecticut (22-6).
No. 24 Wartburg dominated the second half and ousted No. 22 Baldwin Wallace from the Tournament, 57-43. After taking a 23-21 lead into the half, the Knights broke the game open in the third quarter. Britney Young went 3 for 3 from behind the arc and Lauren Woeste scored eight points off the bench in Wartburg’s decisive 21-8 third period. Young finished with 15 points on five 3-pointers for Wartburg (22-6) which will get a shot at the defending national champions tomorrow night. No. 6 Hope beat St. Norbert, 82-61.
The OAC fared better in the first round’s other Top 25 showdown. No. 16 Ohio Northern held No. 25 Berea to 24 percent shooting and sent the Mountaineers packing, 54-43. Brynn Serbin scored 16 points for the Polar Bears (24-4) who had a 36-16 advantage in points in the paint.
Makayla Ardis flirted with a triple-double and No. 14 Trine battled past Washington U., 79-69, at Loras’ regional. Ardis had 18 points, nine rebounds and nine assists and her sister Alyssa had 11 more for the Thunder (22-6). Maya Arnott had 13 points and 10 boards for WashU (17-9) but fouled out in just 29 minutes. Trine will take on No. 15 Loras which knocked out Knox, 68-56.
Cortland controlled the paint and got 24 points from Emily Morano in a 62-51 win over St. Vincent. The Red Dragons outrebounded the Bearcats 50-35 and outscored them in the paint 16-6. Morano did the rest, hitting four of the Red Dragons’ seven 3-pointers and adding five assists. Cortland advances to play regional host No. 20 Trinity (Conn.) since the Bantams defeated Notre Dame (Md.), 58-43.
The SUNYAC went 2-0 as Briana Fitzgerald scored 23 points to lead SUNY New Paltz past Gettysburg, 63-47, at the regional hosted by Smith. The Hawks shot 3 for 17 from three, but made up for it by holding the Bullets to 15 field goals against 22 turnovers. Fitzgerald went 6 for 19 from the floor but nine for 10 from the foul line and grabbed seven rebounds in 39 minutes.
Elyce Knudsen scored 27 points but it was Millikin’s bench that made the difference, as the 18th-ranked Big Blue topped Emory, 76-70. Bailey Coffman scored 17 points and Sarah Ness added 10 more off the bench for Millikin whose reserves outscored Emory’s 32-18.
After shooting 34 percent in the first quarter, Elizabethtown’s offense got on track and the Blue Jays pulled away from Stevens, 79-68. Etown shot 57 percent in the third quarter (8 for 14) and 50 percent in the fourth (7 for 14) with five 3-pointers in the second half. Summer McNulty led Elizabethtown (23-4) with 29 points and nine rebounds. Jess Broad capped her season with 23 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and five blocks for Stevens (22-6).
The Blue Jays draw No.1 Christopher Newport in the second round. The Captains cruised past CUNYAC champion Brooklyn, 89-52.