BEVERLY, MASS. – The Roger Williams women's basketball team's season came to a close on Thursday evening, as they fell 71-47 to Endicott College in the Conference of New England semi-finals.
Emma Shinney tallied 26 points and nine assists in the victory for Endicott, while Sarah Dempsey added 16 points and 14 rebounds, shooting 7/13 from the field in the process. Libby Fleming added 10 points and six rebounds, shooting 6/7 from the free throw line.
For the Hawks,
Sophia Coppola (Madison, Conn.) led the way with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Coppola's 16 points put her in the 1,000-point club, a feat she accomplished in the just three seasons.
Elizabeth Dufrane (Falls Church, Va.) and
Chloe Richardson (Norwell, Mass.) each added 10 of their own, with Dufrane chipping in eight boards.
Meg Qualey (Woburn, Mass.) recorded two steals and a block in the loss as well.
The Hawks drew first blood in the battle, with a
Sophia Coppola three-point play putting the women in front 3-0 to open things up. Cora Nadeau would respond with a three-point jumper to even It back up.
Roger Williams would hold the lead for the next three minutes, before an Emma Shinney jumper would put the Gulls back in front, 10-9. An
Elizabeth Dufrane jumper and
Lilli Clark (Willimantic, Conn.) layup would give the lead back to the Hawks, 13-10. The Gulls would respond, going on an 9-0 run to take control of the lead, 19-13. They would expand their lead even further before the first quarter closed, thanks to three-point jumper at the buzzer by Emma Shinney.
In the second quarter Endicott would take control of the matchup, expanding their lead to double figures with six minutes to play in the half. The Hawks would respond with back-to-back jumpers from Dufrane and Clark. The Gulls would follow with an 8-0 to close the first half, giving them a 15-point lead heading into the locker room.
Endicott would control the matchup for the entirety of the third frame, with their lead never dipping below 15 points.
Sophia Coppola would record her 1,000th and 1,001st points with just 15 seconds remaining, at the free throw line. The Gulls would go on to coast past the Hawks, 71-47.
The Hawks finished their season at 18-9 overall, and 14-4 in conference. It will go down as the Hawks fifth straight season with at least a dozen wins in conference play. They have also reached the semi-final of the conference tournament for five straight seasons.
