| Ally Bromenschenkel scored 12 points in Rose-Hulman's victory over Manchester, which ensured the Fightin' Engineers will stay home throughout the conference playoffs. Rose-Hulman athletics file photo |
Senior Day brought smiles and wins to Rose-Hulman and Ithaca and a sour surprise for No. 7 Mary Washington on the second-to-last Saturday of the regular season.
Rose-Hulman put the clamps on Manchester, holding the Spartans to single-digit scoring in the first three quarters, and cruised to a 65-34 victory. The win gives the Fightin' Engineers at least a share of the HCAC regular season title and the top seed in the conference tournament. The game didn't have much drama as Rose-Hulman led by at least 20 points for much of the second half. Rose-Hulman extended its winning streak to 10 games and its home winning streak to 23 games. Recap
Ithaca got a similarly strong defensive effort and a career-high 28 points from Jordan Beers, and the Bombers beat Hartwick 60-49 in a game between two of the Empire 8's tri-leaders. Hartwick struggled everywhere offensively in the first half. The Hawks shot 27 percent from the field (7-for-26), 11 percent from three (1-for-9) and 29 percent from the foul line (2-for-7). Beers scored 20 points in the second half on 7-for-10 shooting to help push Hartwick a game back of the Bombers and Stevens in the conference race. Stevens won easily at Houghton 81-46 to stay tied for first.
No. 21 Scranton edged No. 22 Catholic 46-44 to split the season series with the Cardinals and make the final week of the regular season more interesting in the Landmark Conference. Neither team shot well, especially in the fourth quarter when they combined for 14 points. After Sarah Payonk made two free throws to extend Scranton's lead to 45-42 with 2:15 remaining, Michelle DeSantis' jump shot pulled Catholic within one. Neither team made a field goal the rest of the way and Catholic missed a potential game-tying layup with one second left. Box score
Today's win puts Scranton two games back of Catholic with two to play, both of which are challenging. The Cardinals close with a home game against Elizabethtown on Wednesday and a road game at Moravian on Saturday that could determine top seed in the conference tournament. The Greyhounds beat Juniata 76-70 to push their winning streak to seven games and pull within one of Catholic. Landmark Conference standings
Kenyon locked up the second seed in the NCAC tournament and beat conference champion DePauw 70-64, ending the Tigers' 19-game winning streak. Bailey Dominguez scored 16 points for the Ladies (17-6, 11-3 NCAC) who outscored No. 10 DePauw 30-16 in the paint. Box score
A couple days after No. 7 Mary Washington gained the upper hand on No. 8 Christopher Newport in the CAC race, the Eagles lost it, as Penn State-Harrisburg stunned Mary Washington 58-57. Neither team made a field goal in the final 3-plus minutes of the fourth quarter and Penn State-Harrisburg (6-17, 4-12 CAC) missed three potential go-ahead free throws in the final minute before Shanique Mattis made one with seven seconds left. The Eagles had two more looks on their final possesion but missed both. No. 8 Christopher Newport took care of business against Wesley, 66-32, and now holds the tiebreaker advantage again.
No. 25 George Fox beat Willamette 87-84 in a thriller. Willamette's Kylie Towry hit a three-pointer with seven seconds left to tie the game at 84, only to see Emily Spencer hit a game-winning three for the Bruins at the buzzer. George Fox remains tied for second in the NWC with No. 15 Whitman, which defeated Pacific Lutheran 73-43, with two games left. The Bruins close the season at Whitman next Saturday night. No. 6 Puget Sound clinched its first NWC title outright by beating Whitworth 78-58. The Loggers shared the conference title with George Fox twice (007, 2008) and Whitman once (2004).
The last five undefeated teams stayed that way without any trouble. No. 1 Amherst finished its perfect run through the regular season by hammering Hamilton 67-21. No. 4 Thomas More rolled past Waynesburg 89-56 to secure top seed in the PAC playoffs. No. 2 St. Thomas breezed past Carleton 91-51, No. 5 Ohio Northern handled John Carroll 89-59 and No. 18 SUNY Geneseo took care of SUNY New Paltz 56-39.