DARTMOUTH, Mass. - Behind a balance offensive attack and solid defense, the UMass Dartmouth women's basketball team posted a 59-37 win over Keene State College in the 2023 Little East Conference Tournament Quarterfinal on Tuesday at the Tripp Athletic Center. The Corsairs improve to 17-9 on the season, while the Owls conclude their campaign with an 8-16 mark.
UMD, the tournament's third seed, advances to Thursday's semifinal game in Providence against second-seeded Rhode Island College on Thursday at 5:30pm in Providence. Fourth-seeded Castleton will travel to top-seeded Eastern Connecticut in the other semifinal game. Thursday's semifinal appearance will be the 15th in program history for the Corsairs.
The Corsairs got off to a dominating start in the game as three-pointers from fifth-year guard Jessica Carroll and graduate student guard Jordan Moretti saw UMD open a 7-0 lead. The Owls got on the scoreboard as Kenzie Durnford drained a shot of her own from beyond the arc, but those would be the lone points of the frame for the visitors as the home team went on an 8-0 run over the final 5:44 for a 15-3 lead after the opening quarter.
Keene's Aryanna Murray got the Owls going in the second quarter, but the Corsairs kept pace as an inside layup from junior guard Kaylin Zalewski kept the score at a 10-point differential (19-9) at 7:33. Carroll scored two buckets over the final three minutes and the home team held Keene State to just a jumper, heading into the halftime with the 23-11 advantage.
Back to action in the third stanza, the Corsairs continued their outstanding play, opening with a 6-0 run to start the frame. Fifth year forward
Caroline Wilson added four points during the run. Durnford broke up the stretch with a three-pointer, but Carroll quickly answered with a three, followed by a Moretti layup at 5:26 for a 34-14 lead.
The Owls, stifled for most of the contest, came alive at 5:08, draining back-to-back threes to cut the deficit to 34-20. Despite the momentum, Moretti answered for the Corsairs with consecutive buckets of her own to open the score back to 18 points (38-20). A pair of layups from KSC's Rylee Burgess helped close the gap for the visitors, but a pair of free throws from graduate student guard
Julia Quinn opened a 43-26 score at 1:20.
Holding a 45-26 lead heading into the final quarter, the Corsairs continued to press as junior forward
Jemima Joseph dropped in four straight points to make it a 23-point lead (49-26) at 8:54. The Owls got a quick jumper, but a three-pointer off the fingertips of junior guard
Jaelyn Lavigne, combined with an inside shot from junior guard
Teja Andrews made it a 54-28 advantage for UMD with 6:54 remaining.
Keene State found a rhythm in the final 2:25 as Valerie Luizzi nailed a jumper, followed by a Burgess layup and another shot from Luizzi to close the gap to 56-37, but the Corsairs saw another Lavigne three-pointer at the 50 second mark to close out the game's scoring and send UMD into the LEC Semifinals.
UMD saw Moretti post a game-high 12 points with a game-best nine rebounds, four assists (also a game-high) and a steal. Carroll also dropped in a game-best 12 points, adding a steal and a rebound, while Joseph finished with nine points, five boards, a block and a steal. Wilson chipped in as well, posting seven points, five caroms and an assist.
For the Owls, Luizzi had 11 points, six rebounds and a game-high four steals. Durnford notched 10 points with five boards, while Burgess posted eight points, eight rebounds and a block.
