ATLANTIC CITY, New Jersey – The second-seeded Marist women's basketball team rolled to a 68-44 triumph over #10 Monmouth in the quarterfinal round of the 2020 Hercules Tires MAAC Women's Basketball Championship on Wednesday at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall.
 
A 15-0 run, which spanned portions of the first and second quarters, gave Marist a lead it would not relinquish. The Red Foxes were in front for 36:39 of game time as they won their 12^th straight.
 

Summary

• Marist jumped out to a 6-2 lead in the game's first three minutes, but Monmouth answered with a 7-0 run.
• The Red Foxes went on a 15-0 run, as the held the Hawks scoreless for 4:56 over the first and second quarters. Senior guard Rebekah Hand scored the first seven points of the spurt.
• Sophomore guard Sarah Barcello drained a corner three-pointer in the waning seconds of the first quarter, and Marist led 19-9 after the first 10 minutes.
• Marist outscored Monmouth 11-3 in the final 1:51 of the second quarter. A straightaway three-pointer by red-shirt junior forward Molly Smith at the buzzer gave Marist a 40-22 halftime lead.
• Marist scored the first six points of the third quarter, which forced a Monmouth timeout at the 7:49 mark.
• The Red Foxes expanded their lead to 27, but Monmouth answered with seven straight points.
• Marist scored the final five points of the third quarter on a layup by junior forward Willow Duffell, and two free throws by fifth-year senior forward Alana Gilmer. The Red Foxes led 59-33 after 30 minutes.
• Marist's lead extended to 33 before Monmouth scored the game's final nine points.

 

Key Stats

• Marist finished with four double-digit scorers: Hand (game-high 18), Gilmer (15), fifth-year senior point guard Grace Vander Weide (14), and Duffell (10, 5-for-5 from the field.
• Vander Weide led Marist in assists (eight) and rebounds (six).
• Marist shot .563 (27-for-48) from the field, and held Monmouth to .314 (16-for-51). The Red Foxes had 21 assists on their 27 field goals.
• Marist shot .467 (7-for-15) from three-point range, and held to Monmouth to .190 (4-for-21).
• Rosa Graham led Monmouth with 11 points.

 

Notes

• This is the ninth time in program history, and first in seven years, that Marist has won 12 straight games.
• This is also the ninth time in program history, and first in six years, that Marist has won at least 26 games in a season.
• Marist head coach Brian Giorgis has won at least one game in the MAAC Championship in all 18 of his seasons at Marist.
• This was Giorgis' 40^th career victory in the MAAC championship. His record is now 40-7, including a 14-2 mark in the quarterfinal round.
• Hand now 1,994 points in her career.
• This is the first time Marist faced Monmouth in the MAAC Championship.

 

Records

• Marist is now 26-4.
• Monmouth's season came to an end at 9-22.

 

Up Next

• Marist will return to action on Friday in the semifinal round at 1:30 p.m.
• The Red Foxes will face the winner of the quarterfinal match-up between #3 Fairfield and #6 Siena, which takes place on Thursday at noon.

 

Note Regarding Fan Bus

There will no longer be a fan bus offered should Marist advance to Saturday's championship game. Game tickets will still be available for purchase through MaristTickets.com.