Box Score KEENE, N.H. – Paced by 19 points and 14 rebounds by sophomore Nakira Examond (New Bedford, Mass.), the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth outscored Keene State in the final three quarters to rebound from a slow start and rise to a 65-56 Little East Conference road win on Saturday. The victory marks just the second time in program history that a Corsair team has won at Keene State.
The Basics
Score: UMass Dartmouth 65, Keene State 56
Records: UMass Dartmouth (14-3, 5-2 LEC) | Keene State (11-6, 5-2 LEC)
How it Happened
After Keene State maintained a small edge in the first quarter, extending to as much as 10 on a 3-pointer by Emily McPadden (Tyngsborough, Mass.), the Corsairs stepped up its defensive play and pounded the ball inside. UMass Dartmouth collected 11 points off six Owl turnovers in the second quarter. In the final minute and a half, Examond registered all five of her points on the quarter including the final two to knot the score at 29 heading into half.
Out of the break, Examond put in a layup off the in-bound and senior Rachel McCarron (Groton, Mass.) sank a pair of foul shots, handing the lead to the visitors for the first and last time. Again, Examond would put in the final five UMass Dartmouth points of the third quarter, putting her team up eight. In the fourth, the Corsairs sealed the game with their best shooting quarter, making 4-of-9 chances from the field and fending off two separate Keene State surges to finish strong. The Owls put the score within five points with 1:40 left, but the hosts misfired on their final three shot attempts while Examond and McCarron both added points to pad the margin.
Inside the Numbers
- Examond turned out her fifth-straight double-double, going 7-of-13 from the field and 5-of-9 from the foul line to lead all scorers.
- UMass Dartmouth surrendered a season-low 10 turnovers on the contest while forcing 18 from the Owls, overall registering 24 points off Keene State's blunders while the Owls could capitalize only seven points off Corsair turnovers.
- The Corsairs hand Keene State its first loss in the 2017 calendar year, and snaps the Owls' five-game win streak as the teams split the season series.
- Junior Rybecca Gonzalez (Providence, R.I.) tied her Corsair career-high with 10 points, adding in five rebounds and a game-high five assists, and classmate Leah Douty (Framingham, Mass.) generated her second-straight double-figure outing with 10 points and six rebounds.
- Keene State was led by junior Lydia Vital's (Cambridge, Mass.) 17 points and senior Amanda Petrow's (Methuen, Mass.) 10 boards.
- With Keene State holding the advantage 43-41 on rebounds, UMass Dartmouth was outdone by an opponent on the boards for just the third time this season and the first time since Nov. 22 against Roger Williams.
- Saturday is just the second time since the two programs began meeting in 1997 that UMass Dartmouth has won at Keene State. The only other victory came over a decade ago on Jan. 24, 2004 with a 70-68 win. Keene State hold the all-time series advantage at 32-9.
Up Next
UMass Dartmouth stays on the road Wednesday, traveling to meet UMass Boston for the first time this season as Little East play continues at 5:30 p.m.
