Box Score Complete Sectional Tournament Bracket
SCRANTON, Pa. – The Eastern Connecticut State University women's basketball team wiped out a seven-point deficit seven minutes into the second half and was 10-for-10 from the foul line over the final minute in posting a 71-62 victory over Baruch College in the second round of the NCAA Division III tournament Saturday night at the John Long Center on the campus of the University of Scranton.
By snapping Baruch's (25-5) 21-game winning streak, Eastern (22-8) advances to the Sweet 16 and will compete in one of the four sectional tournaments next Friday and Saturday at a site not yet determined. The Warriors have won seven straight.
In the sectional openers Friday at Tufts, Eastern has a re-match with Tufts University (28-1) at 7 p.m. while FDU-Florham (28-1) faces SUNY Geneseo (25-4) in the first game at 5 p.m. The final is Saturday at 5:30 p.m., with the winner advancing to the Final Four March 20-21 at Calvin College.
Tickets for each day at Tufts will be available at the door and are priced at $7 for adults and $5 for students with ID and senior citizens. The games are not expected to be sold out.
All but Eastern won their regional tournaments on their home floors Saturday. Tufts downed St. John Fischer, 72-67; FDU defeated University of New England, 91-75; and SUNY eliminated Muhlenberg College, 69-54. Tufts defeated Eastern, 63-51, Nov. 25 at Geissler Gym.
Eastern is ranked tenth in the Northeast Region and unranked in the most recent WBCA/USA Today national poll. Tufts is first in the Northeast and fifth nationally; FDU second in the Atlantic and third nationally; and SUNY first in the East and also received votes nationally.
At left: Kristina Forsman
(Photo by Emma Black)
Sophomore guard Jordyn Nappi's (Southington) only three-point field goal of the game boosted Eastern into the lead for good, 59-57, with 3:54 left, and after junior forward Jill Ritrosky (Pittsfield, MA) made it 61-57 with an inside basket with two minutes left, the Warriors scored their final ten points of the game on ten free throw attempts over the final 62 seconds.
Nappi came off the bench to score all nine of her points in the second half and senior forward Shannon McCourt (New Fairfield) scored 14 of her game-high 24 points over the final 20 minutes. Ritrosky added 17 points and a game-high 15 rebounds in the game, combining with McCourt to connected on 17 of 26 shots from the floor. Senior guard Kristina Forsman (Newington) added ten points and sophomore guard Julia DePoi (Brookfield) grabbed ten rebounds to help the Warriors to a 42-27 rebounding bulge.
A winner of seven in a row, Eastern shot 50.0 percent from the floor and was 21-for-25 at the free throw line.
Eastern bumped off host University of Scranton, 50-48, Friday night. The Royals are ranked first in the Mid-Atlantic and Baruch sixth in the Atlantic.
In two regional games, Eastern out-rebounded its opponent by nearly 10 per game and shot 73.0 percent from the foul line and overcame averaging 6.0 more turnovers per game than its opponent. McCourt and Ritrosky each averaged 16.5 points per game and shot a combined 54.0 percent from the floor. Ritrosky averaged 12.5 rebounds, DePoi 8.0 and McCourt 5.0. Senior guard Taylor McBride (Willimantic) led the team with six assists and three steals. Forsman and Nappi combined to sink all ten of their free throw attempts. With 33 points, Ritrosky moved to within 28 of her 1,000th career point and with 25 rebounds moved to within four of her 800th rebound.
Eastern last advanced beyond the second round of the NCAA in 2003, when it won five NCAA games before dropping a 60-58 decision to Trinity University (TX) in the national title game. That year, it also moved into the sectional round by winning a regional hosted in Pennsylvania by King's College.
