NORTHFIELD, Vt. – Norwich University (17-4, 5-3 GNAC) defeated Saint Joseph's College (14-6, 6-2 GNAC), 62-51, in a rematch of the 2014 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Basketball Championship on Saturday afternoon. Senior guard Sarah Assante (Standish, Maine) registered her second double-double of the season with 11 points and 11 rebounds in the losing effort.
Senior guard Aliah Curry (Windsor, Mass.), sophomore forward Heather LeBlanc (Sanford, Maine), and senior guard Kelsey Lotti (South Yarmouth, Mass.) recorded 19, 16, and eight points, respectively, to pace the Cadets. LeBlanc also recorded her sixth double-double after pulling down 11 rebounds, while Curry finished with a game-high four assists.
The Cadets' defense shut down the opposing offense, holding the Monks to a 25.4 (18-of-71) field-goal percentage, including a 20 (4-of-13) percent mark from the three-point line. The Monks struggled at the free throw line as well, shooting just 68.8 (11-of-16) percent to Norwich's 79.2 (19-of-24) percentage.
Norwich had an early 6-5 lead on a pair of treys from Curry, just under three minute elapsed in the opening period, before stretching the margin to five with a jumper from senior guard Tory Kethro (Barnstable, Mass.) and a layup from LeBlanc for the 10-5 score.
The Monks looked to close in on the margin midway through the frame and did so after back-to-back treys by Hayley Quirion (Augusta, Maine) gave Saint Joseph's its first lead of the game, 22-21, with 7:54 remaining in the half. Both teams continued to fight for the lead until a Kethro jumper and a pair of free throws from freshman guard Arianna Harrison (Vernon, Vt.) gave the Cadets the six-point lead, 36-30, at the break.
Saint Joseph's wasted no time coming out of the locker room as the Monks opened the second half with a 6-0 run to knot the contest before a Norma Waggett (Saugus, Mass.) layup shifted the lead once again. The Cadets responded with a long range shot by Curry to spark a 12-4 run to take the lead once again and extend it even more for the 48-42 score with 7:53 remaining in the game.
The Monks would take advantage of the defensive rebounds, converting six points to the Cadet's two, to trail by three and stay in contention with 3:51 to play. Saint Joseph's quickly found itself in trouble with two players fouling out as the Cadets were called up to the stripe. Norwich would hit 6-of-8 from the charity stripe before sophomore guard Kayla Mercer (New Britain, Conn.) nailed a three-pointer to give the Cadets a comfortable 57-47 lead.
Saint Joseph's looked to get back into contention quickly, but could only muster just four points as the Cadets held on for the 62-51 victory. It was the first time since 2009-10 that the Cadets have defeated Saint Joseph's College.
Norwich returns to action on Tuesday, Feb. 10 as they host Johnson State College for the non-conference matchup at 7:30 PM. Saint Joseph's hosts Bates College at 5:00 PM on Tuesday.
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 430-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
