March 4, 2011
Box Score | Video: Post-Game Press Conference
BRIDGEPORT, CONN. - The #21/18 Marist women's basketball team cruised into the semifinals of the 2011 Spark Energy Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Basketball Championship following a 61-33 win over the eighth-seeded Saint Peter's Peahens on Friday in the quarterfinal round. The win marked the 24th in a row this year, and 15th straight during the MAAC Tournament. Senior guard Erica Allenspach (Miamisburg, Ohio) scored 16 points to lead all scorers on 6-for-7 shooting.
All 16 of her points came in the first half. She also shot a perfect 4-for-4 from distance in the game. She added three rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a steal. Junior Kate Oliver (Sydney, Australia) was a defensive force in the middle with a game-high three blocks.
Marist (28-2) led 9-6 with 11:38 to go in the first half, when the Red Foxes began a 10-0 run over a span of 2:35 to push the lead to 19-6 with 8:49 to play in the opening stanza. Allenspach opened the run with consecutive triples. Oliver collected a Corielle Yarde (Reading, Pa.) miss and put back a layup to continue the spurt. The run was capped with a transition layup by sophomore Kelsey Beynnon (Burlington, Vt.) off a Yarde outlet pass.
Allenspach scored the last of her 16 first half points on a three-point basket with 36 seconds to go. Her long-range basket pushed the lead to 15 points, 30-15, which was the halftime score.
The Red Foxes scored 16 of the first 18 points of the second half, a stretch that took 11:33. Marist scored 15 of its 31 second half points from the free throw line. Freshman Élise Caron (Quebec, Canada), Oliver, senior Maria Laterza (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and junior Kristine Best (Commack, N.Y.) all went 2-for-2 from the line in the second half. Following the stretch, Marist held a 46-17 lead.
Freshman Emma O'Connor (Lynbrook, N.Y.) grew the lead to as many as 34 points, 56-22, with 4:56 remaining. O'Connor scored seven points and shot 3-for-4 from the field.
For the game, Marist outscored Saint Peter's (6-25) 24-14 in the paint, and the Red Foxes' reserves scored 25 points. The Peahens substitutes only scored 11 points. Marist won the battle of the boards 46-38 and dished out 11 assists on 19 field goals. The Red Foxes forced 21 Peahens turnovers and had 13 steals.
The Red Foxes return to the Webster Bank Arena at Harbor Yard against the winner of the Siena-Fairfield quarterfinal. Top-seeded Marist will tip-off at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday morning.
Notes: In three meetings this season, Saint Peter's never scored more than 38 points on Marist... The Red Foxes won all three meetings between Marist and Saint Peter's with an average margin of victory of 37 points per game... The Red Foxes held Saint Peter's to 15 first half points, the 13th time this season, Marist has allowed fewer than 20 points in the first half... Marist leads the all-time series with Saint Peter's 19-15... The Red Foxes are 3-0 against the Peahens in the MAAC Tournament... Head Coach Brian Giorgis is 18-3 against Saint Peter's... Marist has won its 15 MAAC Tournament games... The Red Foxes are 16-1 when they are the top seed in the tournament.
