Box Score
PLYMOUTH, N.H. – In a Little East Conference women's basketball game with absolutely no Little East Conference playoff ramifications – Eastern Connecticut State University having already secured the No. 4 seed and Plymouth State University having already been eliminated from contention -- the Warriors finished with double-digit wins in the conference for the 19
th time in 38 years with a 64-49 victory Saturday afternoon at Foley Gymnasium.
Eastern (11-14 / 10-6 LEC) had won six of its first seven LEC games and on the heels of a four-game losing streak, captured four of its final five to finish solidly in fourth place and for the second straight year, will host fifth-seeded Keene State College (12-13 / 8-8 LEC) in the first round of the LEC tournament Tuesday at 6 p.m. at Geissler Gymnasium.
The Warriors finished two games behind third-place University of Southern Maine (16-9 /12-4 LEC) and two ahead of Keene State and four behind LEC co-champions University of Massachusetts Dartmouth (21-4 / 14-2 LEC) and Rhode Island College (19-6 / 14-2 LEC)
If it is able to advance through the first round of the tournament for the 11
th straight year, Eastern will visit No. 1 seed and nationally-ranked UMass Dartmouth, which defeated Eastern this year by an average of 31.5 points in two wins. The Corsairs claimed their first No. 1 seed since 2019 (and were beaten by No. 2 Eastern in overtime at the Tripp Athletic Center in the title game) by virtue of sweeping Rhode Island in the regular-season series. UMass is looking for its first LEC tournament title after four second-place finishes while Eastern is a seven-time tournament champion (most recently in 2020).
Although Eastern now holds a 76-11 advantage in the all-time series with Plymouth (5-20, 1-15 LEC), the Warriors have struggled against the Panthers in their last three encounters. Plymouth had ended a 23-game losing streak at the hands of Eastern with an eight-point win on the final day of last year's regular season at Geissler Gym and a month ago at home, Eastern escaped with a six-point overtime victory – needing a pair of three-point field goals from senior co-captain
Kya Mayo (Middletown) in the final four minutes of regulation to subdue the visitors.
While the Panthers have struggled this year in the conference, they won nearly half (four of nine) of their non-conference games while Eastern had lost eight of nine games outside the LEC. Heading into Saturday, Plymouth's only home win had come more than three months ago, 59-31 over VTSU Johnson.
Against Plymouth Saturday, Eastern posted its 24
th straight victory over the Panthers at Foley Gymnasium, last losing at Plymouth at least two years before the birth of any of this year's 13 roster players.
Saturday, Eastern managed only nine points in the first quarter and led by only four at halftime before a 23-point final quarter allowed it to pull away, with the final 15-point margin representing its largest lead of the game.
With Eastern leading by four early in the fourth quarter, Eastern reeled off eight straight points to make it 55-43 midway through the quarter. First-year point guard
Liv Cassesse (Wallingford) sandwiched two three-point field goals around sophomore forward
Marissa Nudd's (Colchester) jump shot to account for that short scoring burst. Mayo set up both of Cassesse's baskets in that run from distance with passes, and sophomore guard
Julia Knowles' (Waterford) rebound and Cassesse's feed set up Nudd's hoop.
Nudd (10-of-17 FG) led all players with 24 points—matching her highest total since a 31-point debut in the season-opener -- to lead four double-digit scorers to go along with seven rebounds, with senior forward
Taylor Salato (East Haven) adding 13 points and 11 rebounds for her fifth straight double-double in the final regular-season game of her career, Cassesse had four of Eastern's eight three-point field goals and finished with 12 points, six assists and four rebounds, while Mayo chipped in 11 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals in
her final regular-season game. All but two points and one rebound came from the starters.
Junior forward Hailey Malozzi, who had her way with 21 points and six rebounds in the first game against Eastern, was limited to four points on 2-of-12 shooting and two rebounds in 25 minutes off the bench.
Against Keene Tuesday, Eastern looks to close out its home season with a .500 record, having won only once in its last four tries at home since edging Plymouth on Jan. 18. Although it is just 4-8 this year away from Spaulding Gymnasium, Keene has won five of its last seven games overall heading into tournament play. Among the wins, Keene stunned UMass Dartmouth, 71-61 at home at mid-week, thanks to 27-of-30 free throw shooting (17-of-18 in a 25-point fourth quarter). The LEC loss was UMass Dartmouth's second straight after it had won its first 13.
Ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, in the Little East pre-season poll, Eastern and Keene meet in the LEC tournament for the tenth time, the Warriors having won six and the Owls three. All but one of the previous nine LEC tournament games between the programs have been played at Geissler Gymnasium.
Eastern is 6-2 at home against the Owls in the LEC tournament. The teams are meeting for the sixth time in the first round, Eastern having won four of the previous five first-round games. In last year's first-round game here in a game which also pitted the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds, Eastern overcame a 31-point loss two weeks earlier against Keene at Geissler Gym to eliminate Keene, 43-38 and advance to the tournament semifinals. In that game, Eastern scored the final 12 points, taking its first lead with two minutes left. Despite shooting 4-of-17 from the floor, Salato managed 17 points (9-of-10 FT) and 16 rebounds while Mayo had ten points and six rebounds. Keene made only one of its final 15 shots and finished with a 21.4 shooting percentage Both teams relied primarily upon their starters, getting a total of only six points off the bench.
This year, Eastern and Keene rank 1-2 in the LEC in free throw percentage. Keene sophomore guard Brynn Rautiola and Salato rank 1-2 in the LEC in scoring, and 2-3 in free throw percentage, with Salato third in rebounding. Rautiola is the conference leader in three-point field goals, having made four less than Eastern's team.
In Eastern's two wins this year against Keene, Salato averaged 15.5 points and 15.0 rebounds as one of four Eastern players to average double figures... Rautiola tossed in 23 points in her only game against Eastern this year. Junior guard Valerie Luizzi of Keene averages 13.0 points and 8.0 rebounds against Eastern this year. The Owls shot just 57.6 percent from the foul line in those two games, while Eastern is 16-of-34 from distance this year against Keene and has a +22 advantage in rebounding but has averaged 14 turnovers as opposed to only 8.5 for Keene
Former Bacon Academy teammates meet for the third time this year in Luizzi and Nudd. Against Keene this year, Nudd has averaged 14.0 points (10-of-20 FG), 4.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists.
Keene advanced beyond the first round of the tournament three straight years between 2015 and 2017, losing in the semifinals to No. 1 Eastern in 2015 and to No. 6 UMass Boston in 2016 before defeating No. 3 UMass Dartmouth in the semifinals and No. 1 and two-time defending champion Eastern in the 2017 final, 71-58, at Geissler Gymnasium.
EASTERN VS. KEENE STATE
LEC TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Eastern, 6-3
1998 Eastern, 69-45 First Round Geissler Gym
1999 Keene, 54-51 First Round Geissler Gym
2005 Keene, 64-53 Semifinals Hill Gym (USM)
2009 Eastern, 61-56 Semifinals Geissler Gym
2011 Eastern, 65-54ot First Round Geissler Gym
2014 Eastern, 67-53 First Round Geissler Gym
2015 Eastern, 51-30 Semifinals Geissler Gym
2017 Keene, 71-58 Final Geissler Gym
2024 Eastern, 43-38 First Round Geissler Gym
