BEVERLY, MASS. – The Roger Williams women's basketball team fell to the Endicott Gulls 62-49 on Wednesday evening, pushing their record to 13-4 in Conference of New England play. The loss will lock the Hawks into the third seed for the upcoming CNE Playoff Tournament, with the Gulls locking down the second seed with the win.
Endicott got off to a fast start against the Hawks in the win, jumping out to a 15-8 lead over the course of the entirity of the first quarter. It was Endicott defense that caused the Hawks some issues, as they shot just 3/13 in the first quarter. On the other side, the opponent shot 7/16 in the frame. The Gulls would expand their lead even further in the second quarter, once again holding the Hawks to just 3/13 shooting, en-route to a 29-17 halftime lead.
Out of the half, Endicott was able to expand their lead once again, as they jumped out with a 8-0 run to begin the third frame. A Libby Fleming jumper brought the Gulls lead to 22, which would go down as their largest lead of the night. A pair of free throws by
Maia Riccio (Cranston, R.I.) followed by a three-point jumper by
Sakoya Sweeney (Craftsbury, Vt.) cut the deficit to 15, however Emma Shinney would follow with two free throws to bring the lead back to 17 for the Gulls. Both teams would finish the last two minutes of the third quarter scoreless, with Endicott holding a 17-point lead heading into the fourth. In the final frame, the Hawks were able to cut the opponent lead as low as 11, however the Gulls were able to hold off the Hawks to secure the 62-49 victory.
As a unit, the Hawks shot just 31% compared to the opponents 41% shooting from the field. Additionally, Roger Williams was outrebounded 44-33 by the Gulls.
Individually, Roger Williams saw two players reach double figures in
Sophia Coppola (Madison, Conn.) and
Lilli Clark (Willimantic, Conn.), netting 13 and 11 respectively.
Meg Qualey (Woburn, Mass.) added a team-high eight rebounds as well. For the opponent, Libby Fleming recorded a double double with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Sarah Dempsey added a double double of her own, with 13 points and 15 rebounds.
Roger Williams will travel back home to take on the University of New England for their regular season finale on Saturday, Feb. 22. The Hawks will be locked into the three seed for the upcoming playoff tournament which will begin on Tuesday, Feb. 25 where the Hawks will host their opponent.
