Seahawks' rally falls short against Nor'easters

SEAHAWK WOMEN'S BASKETBALL RESULTS
U. of New England 57, Salve Regina 45
Newport, R.I. - Rodgers Rec. Ctr.
Saturday, January 21, 2017

Summary
NEWPORT, R.I. - Four-time defending Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) women's basketball champions University of New England ran its win streak against Salve Regina University to 12 games with a 57-45 victory at the Rodgers Recreation Center on Saturday afternoon.

Junior guard Sam MacDonald (Lebanon, N.H.) led all players with 15 points for the Nor'easters, while freshman guard Torie Scorpio (Cranston, R.I.) paced the host Seahawks with 13 points.

Series and Streaks
The Nor'easters have won the last dozen meetings with the Seahawks which includes the 2013 CCC championship game in Biddeford, Maine (69-63 on Feb. 23, 2013) that began the current four-year title run for University of New England. Seahawks (three) and Nor'easters (five) have combined to win the last eight conference championships, and twice have met in the title game (2011 in Newport; 2013 in Biddeford). Salve Regina has not won at home since Feb. 10, 2016 (64-51 against Nichols); the Seahawks will get their next chance to end an eight-game skid at the Rodgers Recreation Center against Curry next Saturday. University of New England has now won five in a row while Salve Regina University's win streak ends at two.

Three Stars of the Game

1. Nor'easter junior guard Sam MacDonald (Lebanon, N.H.) scored a game-high 15 points on five of nine from the floor, and five of six from the stripe. She also had two steals, two assists, and two rebounds.
2. Seahawk freshman guard Torie Scorpio (Cranston, R.I.) led the Seahawks in scoring (13 points) and rebounding (eight).
3. Nor'easter senior center Alicia Brown (Greenland, N.H.) made the Seahawks feel her presence in 25 minutes, swatting four shots while scoring nine points and grabbing nine rebounds.

Key Stat of the Game
Both teams missed 10 free throws apiece, but the Nor'easters made five more field goals (19-14) and three more from the charity stripe (16-13).

Turning Point
University of New England scored the first seven points of the game before Salve Regina rallied to take a one-point lead on three separate occasions. Laura Holman's (Mostar, Croatia) 3-pointer at 5:17 in the second quarter put the Nor'easters on top, 16-14, and they never trailed (or tied) the rest of the way.

Quick Hits

• Salve Regina forced University of New England into 19 turnovers (just 16 for the Seahawks).
• Seahawks had more 3-pointers than the Nor'easters (four to three) with two from Scorpio and one apiece from Mary Eden (So. Kingstown, R.I.) and Kerri Beland (Attleboro, Mass.).
• Every player in the game had at least one rebound.
• Despite being four games under .500 in league play (3-7), Salve Regina has outscored CCC opponents this season, 573-560.

Quotes
"I think we really struggled hitting shots and keeping them off the boards. Offensive rebounds, not finishing off at the free throw line, not finishing off open shots; we missed 10 free throws and lost by 12 points. That's the story of the game right there." - Salve Regina head coach Cori Hughes

"To be honest, I didn't know where to start my college search so I Googled "schools by the beach" and then I found Salve and it fit my criteria, and I just came here and fell in love." - Salve Regina freshman forward Gabby Preziosi of Cedar Grove, N.J.

Next Up
Salve Regina (5-12, 3-7 CCC) - Wednesday, January 25 at Western New England University, 7:30 p.m.
U. of New England (11-5, 8-2 CCC) - Monday, January 23 vs Saint Joseph's (Me.), 7 p.m.