Saturday women: Flawless victory

Sidney Wagner did a lot of scoring and a little bit of everything else in No. 11 Trine's win at No. 15 Hope.
File photo by Trine University athletics
 

No. 3 Bowdoin completed a perfect regular season while No. 11 Trine executed its offense flawlessly at No. 15 Hope and No. 19 Randolph-Macon used a fourth-quarter shutout to win the ODAC regular season title in Saturday’s Division III women’s basketball action.

No. 3 Bowdoin became the first women’s team this season to complete a perfect regular season when the Polar Bears put away Trinity (Conn.), 57-37. Bowdoin entered the fourth quarter ahead by seven and quickly put out of reach when Abbie Quinn went on a personal 8-0 run. The Polar Bears held the Bantams to five points in the fourth quarter and 37 overall, their lowest output of the season.

Bowdoin (24-0, 10-0 NESCAC) will be the top seed in the NESCAC tournament and host eighth-seed Williams next Saturday. Bowdoin’s last undefeated regular season was 2003-04 when the Polar Bears lost in the national championship to Wilmington.

No. 15 Trine played a dazzling second half at the DeVos Fieldhouse and defeated No. 11 Hope, 80-63, to all-but-clinch the MIAA title.

The Thunder pushed their lead to double-digits on back-to-back threes from All-American Sidney Wagner in the third quarter. Trine's lead swelled to 22 points in the early fourth quarter as the Thunder guards repeatedly penetrated the Hope defense and found open teammates along the perimeter and around the rim. The Thunder finished with a 48-22 scoring advantage in the paint, and Wagner filled the stat sheet with 23 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, five steals and two blocks.

Trine (21-2, 14-0 MIAA) can win the title outright by beating 5-18 Olivet on Wednesday night.

Lauryn Milne scored 24 points for UW-La Crosse, and the Eagles bolstered their playoff hopes by edging No. 5 UW-Oshkosh, 64-56. Kayce Vaile gave Oshkosh a 50-47 lead with 2:06 to play in regulation but the Titans were held scoreless the rest of the way and Milne hit a game-tying three with seven seconds left in the period. Milne and Grace Knupp hit late threes in overtime for the Eagles, who improved to 14-9, 6-6 in conference and sit one game back of UW-Whitewater for third place.

Oshkosh’s loss is No. 17 UW-Stout’s gain. The Devils downed UW-Platteville 67-55 at home and pulled within one game of the first-place Titans. Raegan Sorensen posted a double-double for Stout (18-5, 9-3 WIAC) which hosts UW-Oshkosh in the regular season finale next Saturday.

Both ranked ODAC teams rallied to victory on the road on Saturday afternoon, as Randolph-Macon ended that conference’s race for first.

Mary Schleusner had another eye-popping performance, pouring in 43 points and grabbing 27 rebounds, for No. 20 Washington and Lee, as the Generals defeated Shenandoah, 67-61. W&L outscored the Hornets 30-14 in the fourth quarter with Schleusner scoring 22 points that period. The Generals prevailed despite trailing by 18 in the third quarter and getting just 17 points from players other than Schleusner through three periods.

No. 19 Randolph-Macon completed their road rally with defense, holding Ferrum to one fourth-quarter point in a 56-49 victory. Catherine Kagey scored 21 points for Randolph-Macon (22-1, 14-0 ODAC) which secured the top-seed in the upcoming ODAC tournament for the first time since 2011. The Yellow Jackets have also won 21 straight.

Southern Maine celebrated Senior Day with an outstanding performance from first year guard Dakota Shipley and a 74-68 win over No. 23 Mass-Dartmouth. Shipley scored 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, and the Huskies shot 47 percent from the field. Carly Whiteside paced the Corsairs (20-3, 13-1 LEC) with 24 points.

Messiah secured the top-seed in the MAC Commonwealth playoffs in a wire-to-wire 61-52 win over York (Pa.). Chloe Milanesi registered 10 points and 14 rebounds for the Falcons (21-2, 12-0 MACC) who have won 14 in a row.

Cortland is on the verge of winning the SUNYAC regular season title after beating SUNY New Paltz, 61-56. Jackie Funk scored 14 of her career-high 21 points in the fourth quarter as the Red Dragons (20-3, 15-1 SUNYAC) extended their lead over the Hawks to 1.5 games. Cortland can secure the top seed with a win in either of last two games or a New Paltz loss next Saturday.

For the second time this season, Merchant Marine outlasted Mount St. Mary in overtime, with the Mariners prevailing this time, 68-62. Merchant Marine's Hannah Ramsden hit a game-tying three with 2:19 left in the fourth quarter, and neither team scored again until the Mariners scored four seconds into overtime. Merchant Marine held the Knights to one field goal in the extra period. Carolae Barton scored 14 points and grabbed 17 rebounds, seven offensive, in the Mariners' 21st consecutive win.