POULTNEY, Vt. – Taylor Hill's first career double-double was not enough to help push the Green Mountain women's basketball team past visiting Vermont Tech as the Knights galloped past the Eagles, 83-62, in non-conference action on Wednesday evening at the Eagle Dome.
The two teams played very contrasting styles as Vermont Tech (3-8) pounded the ball into the paint while Green Mountain (0-5) bombed away from the outside. The Knights were rewarded for their work in the paint and converted their freebies going 20-of-25 from the line. The Eagles fired up 35 shots from deep, hitting on eight which translated to a 22.9 percent success rate.
The Knights shot 44.1 percent from the floor compared to 28.9 percent for the Eagles. The visitors held the advantage on the boards with a 53-43 edge. Both teams received an equal contribution from their reserves with 14 points while the Eagles outscored the Knights on second chance opportunities 12-10.
Doireann Chesbrough led all scorers with 28 points and also notched nine rebounds and four assists for the Knights. Paige Wells contributed 17 points and seven rebounds while Kiana Royer also hit double-digit points with 11 in addition to her nine boards and game-high six assists.
Hill posted a career-high 24 points and 11 rebounds in the loss for GMC. Mercedes Rideout joined her in double-digit scoring by hitting for 12 points. The pair of guards combined to shoot 27 of the team's 35 three-pointers. Rachel Moore, Kali DeMarco and Laney Trammell each posted six points with DeMarco also registering four steals while Trammell grabbed four boards.
Suzanna Moses started the Eagles off with a three-pointer to open the game, but the team quickly found itself playing from behind after allowing the visitors to score nine-straight points. Hill's back-to-back threes brought the hosts back to tie the game at 13-13. After Trammell hit on a pair of free throws to draw the Eagles square again at 17-17, the Knights finished off the first quarter with four-straight points.
VTC used a 7-0 run midway through the second frame to build a 32-21 lead. GMC chipped away at the lead getting it down seven a couple times, but a 4-0 run to finish the half sent the visitors to the locker room up 41-30.
The Eagles hit half of their three pointers in the third quarter, including three by Hill, and shot 40 percent from the floor to narrow the deficit to seven points at 60-53 heading into the final stanza.
Unfortunately, the hosts went ice cold from the floor in the final period shooting just 14.3 percent and witnessed the Knights hitting on 11-of-12 free throw attempts to put the game out of reach.
Green Mountain will head to Lyndon tomorrow to face the Hornets at 7:30 p.m. while Vermont Tech will host Great Bay Community College on Saturday at 1 p.m.