Montclair, NJ – With their two all-conference performers leading the way, top-seeded Montclair State advanced to the NJAC Championship Game for a fourth straight season as the Red Hawks got past fifth-seeded William Paterson, 71-62 in semifinal action at the Panzer Athletic Center on Tuesday evening.
Katie Sire and Rachael Krauss each scored 18 points with Zoe Curtis and Kate Tobie adding 11 apiece sending MSU into the title game at home against second-seeded Rowan University on Friday, February 26 at 7:00 pm. The winner earns the league's automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championship.
Montclair, winners of nine straight, is making its seventh appearance overall in the NJAC Championship Game and seeking to become the first team to win four straight league crowns since Rowan from 1996-1999. The Red Hawks also upped their season record to 20-6, reaching 20 wins for the fourth straight year, a first for the program.
Senior Brittany Harden finished with 18 points leading three players in double figures for the Pioneers, who fell to 15-12 on the year. WPU reached the semifinals after knocking off fourth-seeded Kean University in overtime on the road on Saturday, 91-83.
William Paterson stormed out of the gate scoring the first 11 points with Alex Milne, who scored 15 points, getting six the game-opening run. Montclair would get on the board with 6:52 left on a Krauss three-pointer igniting a 16-2 run by the Red Hawks. Curtis gave Montclair the lead at 14-13 and Tobie added a steal and layup made it a three-point game with 3:02 remaining. The Pioneers scored the final three points as Jackie Rodriguez knocked down a pair of free throws to forge a 16-16 tie after one period.
The Red Hawks opened the second quarter with a 9-3 run and led 25-19 as Taylor Harmon score on a layup with 4:49 to play. Sire's steal and layup extended the MSU lead to 29-22 however Harden registered the final five points to get WPU within 29-27 at the break.
Sire, a First-Team All-NJAC selection had nine points and Krauss, a Second-Team pick, combined for 16 points in the first 20 minutes with Tobie adding nine as Montclair took advantage of 17 turnovers by the Pioneers turning those miscues into 19 points.
William Paterson used a seven-point run midway through the third to re-take the lead. Four different players scored, including Jackie Rodriguez whose layup gave the Pioneers a 38-33 advantage with 4:50 left. Montclair swung the momentum back in its direction with an eight-point spurt. Tiarra Dillard started it off with a steal and layup and a deep three from Krauss vaulted the Red Hawks back into the lead at 39-38 with 3:27 left. Harmon scored on a layup with 92 seconds for a 45-40 MSU lead however the Pioneers closed the gap to a point on Nikole Williams' two free throws with eight seconds. Tobie quickly moved the ball up the floor for MSU and found Curtis in the corner for a three-pointer at the buzzer making the score 48-44 after three periods.
Sire would take over in the fourth quarter scoring 12 of her 18 points. She and Curtis began the final period with layups and Sire's jumper with 6:01 to go gave MSU the 56-47 advantage. The Pioneers whittled the lead down to foul twice, including 61-57 on a Harden layup with 1:09 to go. After struggling from the foul line in the early going, MSU hit 10-of-12 at the line to ice the game.
Sire (5 steals) finished with eight rebounds while Krauss grabbed seven for MSU which overcame a 31-29 deficit on the boards. Tobie had five assists and five steals for Montclair State, which posted its 11th straight win against WPU and includes three meetings this season. The Red Hawks also evened its record against the Pioneers in the NJAC Tournament a 3-3 having the three most recent matchups. Montclair defeated WPU in the 2013 and 2014 NJAC title contests.
Rodriguez had 16 points and five rebounds for William Paterson which got 15 points and seven rebounds from Milne.