ALLENTOWN, Pa. - #23 Christopher Newport University (23-4) surged past Saint Joseph's College (23-6), 65-47, in the opening round of the NCAA DIII Women's Basketball Tournament at Memorial Hall on the campus of Muhlenberg College on Friday evening.
THE LEAD
The unfamiliar foes stood at a 25-25 stalemate heading into halftime, but an uneven third quarter changed the complexion of the tourney tilt, as the Captains forced 11 turnovers and the Monks went 2-7 from the field en route to being outscored by an 18-6 margin in the penultimate frame.
Saint Joseph's trailed, 43-31, going into the fourth period and fared better in the final quarter, but the Monks were unable to overcome sizeable discrepancies in free throw shooting and ball security. The Captains went 24-33 from the line and netted 21 points off 27 SJC turnovers while the Monks shot 43.8% (7-16) from the charity stripe and managed to score 10 points off 23 CNU miscues.
With the result, Christopher Newport advances to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and will face pod-host Muhlenberg College, which defeated St. John Fisher, 81-72, in tonight's late game, tomorrow at 7:00 PM. For Saint Joseph's, the loss signals the end of the 2015-16 campaign.
LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S
- Senior center Morgan Cahill (Yarmouth, Maine) recorded an admirable performance in her final collegiate contest, netting 15 points with four rebounds and a pair of steals; the four-year starter scored 12 points off a 6-8 effort shooting before the break
- Freshman guard Kelsi McNamara (West Newbury, Mass.) tallied nine points, three assists, and two boards
- Freshman guard Julia Champagne (Brunswick, Maine) chipped in with seven points and four caroms
- Sophomore guard Emily Quirion (Augusta, Maine) contributed six points
- Sophomore forward Brianne Maloney (South Portland, Maine) dealt a team-high four assists
LEADERS – CHRISTOPHER NEWPORT
- Sophomore forward Jasmine Bonivel (Toledo, Ohio) came off the bench to lead all scorers with 20 points while going 4-6 from three-point range and 8-9 from the FT line
- Sophomore forward Sam Porter (Alexandria, Va.) nearly registered a double-double with 17 points and nine boards
- Sophomore forward Devon Byrd (Grottoes, Va.) was 7-10 from the line with 12 points, eight caroms, four steals, and three assists
- Sophomore guard Makenzie Fancher (New Freedom, Pa.) contributed with four points, six assists, five rebounds, and five steals
TEAM STATS
Saint Joseph's shot 34.7% (17-49) from the floor, 37.5% (6-16) from three-point distance, and 43.8% (7-16) from the FT line while Christopher Newport posted percentages of 35.4% (17-48), 38.9% (7-18), and 72.7% (24-33) from the field, downtown, and the charity stripe, respectively, on the evening.
The Captains held advantages in rebounds (40-32), assists (14-13), turnovers (23-27), points off turnovers (21-10), second-chance points (11-6), points in the paint (18-14), and bench points (27-16) in the victory.
QUITE THE CAREER
Tonight's loss signals the end of NCAA Basketball for Morgan Cahill, who goes down as one of the truly elite players in the 39-year history of the SJC women's basketball program. In 110 games, she capped her career ranked among the Monks' all-time leaders in points (1,651, 2nd), rebounds (876, 5th), field goals made (662, 2nd), field goals attempted (1,414, 2nd), free throws made (327, 4th), free throws attempted (479, 5th), blocked shots (222, 1st), rebounding average (8.0, 7th), and scoring average (15.0, 7th).
Over her four years, Cahill helped the Monks post a 78-33 (.703) overall record, including a 35-10 (.778) mark in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) play, with four GNAC tourney appearances and a pair of conference championships. She claimed an astonishing 61 individual accolades during her career, including four All-Conference honors as well as 2013 GNAC and Maine Women's Basketball Coaches Association (MWBCA) Rookie of the Year awards.
The two-year team captain finishes her career as the only player in program history to lead the Monks in scoring and rebounding in each of her four seasons.
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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 474-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.
