BIDDEFORD, Maine - Led by a career-high 23 points from sophomore forward Margo Russell (Madison, Maine), the University of New England picked up an easy 74-46 victory over No. 8 Roger Williams University in The Commonwealth Coast Conference (TCCC) women's basketball quarterfinal Tuesday evening at the Campus Center.
The top-seeded Nor'easters (21-5) advance to Thursday's semifinal round and will entertain No. 4 Salve Regina University (a 64-51 winner over No. 5 Colby-Sawyer College) at 7:00 p.m.
Russell made five of her nine field goal attempts for the game, including 3-for-3 from downtown, and converted all 10 of her attempts from the foul line. She also added five rebounds and five assists.
Classmate Kelley Paradis (Newport, Maine) chipped in with 13 points, five boards, five assists, and picked up three steals. Kari Pelletier (South Paris, Maine) finished with 10 points.
First-year forward Beth Suggs (Bath, Maine) collected a team-high seven rebounds off the bench for UNE, which out-rebounded its opponent, 46-36.
RWU was paced by first-year Alexandria Lanieri (Port Jefferson, N.Y.) who went for 20 points and six rebounds. Sophomore Ryan Weekes (Worcester, Mass.) tallied nine points to go with a game-high 11 caroms and four steals. Classmate Danielle Perrault (Ridgefield, Conn.) dished out a contest-best six helpers.
After an opening basket by Paradis, Russell connected for seven straight points to give the Nor'easters a 9-0 lead 3:26 into the game, and the hosts never looked back.
UNE was up 34-19 late in the first half before back-to-back treys from first-year Liz LeBlanc (Jay, Maine) and a three-pointer from Russell made it 43-19 at the break.
Big Blue dialed up seven baskets from deep in the opening frame, shooting 46.7 percent from beyond the arc. On the other end the Hawks struggled putting the ball in the hoop, connecting on 27.3 percent (9 of 33) in the period.
The cushion never dipped below 20 after halftime as UNE pulled away.
The Hawks, who have now lost nine consecutive meetings between the two teams, end their season with an overall mark of 9-17.
- Release courtesy of the University of New England Sports Information Department
