DARTMOUTH, Mass. – Powered by a career-high 30-point day from senior
Kaylin Zalewski, the UMass Dartmouth women's basketball team overcame Southern Maine, 84-67, in the semifinal match of the 2023-24 Little East Conference Tournament. The win saw the #20 Corsairs move to 23-3 overall heading into the Conference Championship Game. Meanwhile, the Huskies season concludes with an overall record of 13-14.
The Corsairs were paced by Zalewski's 30 points on 12 for 20 (60.0%) from the field. She also hauled in seven rebounds and five steals. Grad student
Carly Whiteside posted an efficient 18 points on 6 for 7 (85.7%) from the floor. Whiteside was also 6 for 6 from the free throw line and grabbed six boards in 27 minutes of action. Senior
Teja Andrews got in on the mix with 17 points on 50.0% shooting (6 for 12) and was 5 for 7 from the charity stripe. As a unit defensively, the Corsairs recorded 13 steals and caused 22 USM turnovers.
Southern Maine, paced throughout by Tamrah Gould, saw the senior guard score 13 points and go 8 for 8 on free throws. Senior Tara Flanders added 11 points, enough to eclipse 1,000 career points with the Huskies. Senior Amy Fleming contributed 10 points of her own with five rebounds.
After the Corsairs went up 37-23 at the 5:56 mark of the second quarter, Southern Maine nailed three straight three-pointers, along with a pair of free throws that cut their deficit down to just three points with 4:17 to go in the half. UMass Dartmouth then responded with a 12-6 run of their own to close the half, featuring eight quick points from Zalewski. Zalewski tallied 19 points in the first half alone, helping UMD go into the break with a 49-40 advantage.
In the third quarter, an and-one from Andrews put UMass Dartmouth on top, 54-42 at the 8:08 mark. Southern Maine then controlled the remainder of the third quarter, going on an 11-2 run to cut the UMass Dartmouth lead down to just 56-53 entering the final quarter. The Huskies' third quarter was their best of the game, outscoring UMD 13-7.
After a tough third quarter where several UMass Dartmouth players found themselves in foul trouble, they came into the fourth quarter with an intensity that led to their best 10-minute stretch of the game. The Corsairs outscored the Huskies 28-14 in the fourth, featuring a 21-7 run. The final horn sounded with UMD on top, 84-67.
The Corsairs advance to their fourth Little East Conference Championship Game since 2018, and second in the last three seasons. UMass Dartmouth will travel to Rhode Island College, who defeated Eastern Connecticut in Semifinal play. The #20 Corsairs will face the #3 Anchorwomen on Saturday, February 24
th at 1:00pm. The winner of these two LEC powerhouses will earn an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
