Box Score WILLIMANTIC, Conn. – Junior Ali Doswell scored 13 of her game-high 22 points in the second half and junior Meredith Doswell grabbed seven rebounds over the final 20 minutes as the No. 4 Amherst College women's basketball team pulled away for a 63-46 non-conference victory over No. 23 Eastern Connecticut State University Thursday evening at Francis E. Geissler Gymnasium.
At right: Jill Ritrosky defends Amherst's Meredith Doswell in the first half of Thursday's 63-46 non-conference loss at Geissler Gymnasium. (Photo by Taylor Emmerson)
Eastern (4-2) led once in the game by two points two minutes into the second quarter but Amherst (5-0) limited the Warriors to 13 second-half points, doubling Eastern's total in handing the Warriors their first home loss of the season after four wins.
Trailing 15-9 after ten minutes, the Warriors outscored Amherst by two in the second quarter – exceeding its combined total of the other three quarters by two with 24 points. Senior forward Jill Ritrosky (Pittsfield, MA) scored eight of her ten first-half points in the second quarter and Danyelle Rodriquez (Willimantic) came off the bench with four minutes left in the second quarter to drain consecutive three pointers that cut Amherst's nine-point lead to three, 36-33, with 30 seconds left before the half.
Leading by only four points, 37-33 at halftime, Amherst struck quickly after the break, scoring the first eight points in the first two minutes to mount a 12-point, 45-33 lead. Ali Doswell turned two turnovers into a pair of layups and scored her team's first six points before 6-foot-1 inch sophomore Hannah Hackley sank two free throws to push the lead to 12. The Warriors never got closer than eight the rest of the way.
The Warriors battled foul trouble throughout most of the game against the taller visitors, who started four players at 5-foot-10 or taller. Ritrosky, Eastern's leading scorer and rebounder this year, recorded her 33rd career double-double with 11 points and a game-high 15 rebounds before fouling out in the final two minutes. Three teammates finished the game with four personal fouls.
Amherst doubled Eastern's total from the foul line, sinking 22 of 29 tries while Eastern was 11-of-19, and forced 19 turnovers to post a 21-4 scoring advantage on turnovers.
The 5-foot-10 inch Ali Doswell led all players with 22 points and was Amherst's only double-digit scorer, although four starting teammates chipped in eight points each. The 5-foot-11 inch Meredith Dostwell complemented her team-high total of 12 rebounds with three blocked shots and five assists.
Junior guard Julia DePoi (Brookfield) supported Eastern's 41-30 rebounding advantage with a season-high nine, while junior center Lexis Foster (Groton) had five rebounds and two blocked shots to go along with five points.
While Ritrosky connected on four of nine field goals – mostly from inside – her four starting teammates managed only 5-of-27 (18.5 percent) from the floor and gave the ball away 11 times.
Eastern opens Little East Conference play Saturday at 1 p.m., hosting the University of Southern Maine.
