Box Score AMHERST, Mass. – Senior captain and guard Ali Doswell was the total package for the No. 1 Amherst College women's basketball team on Sunday afternoon.
|
| Michela North was one of two Jumbos to reach double figures in scoring. |
The standout guard dropped 14 of her team-high 16 points in the second half, as Amherst defeated No. 3 Tufts University, 41-37, in the NESCAC championship game in LeFrak Gymnasium at Amherst College.
Doswell shot 7-for-11 from the field, grabbed nine boards, dished out five assists and recorded three steals, while posting an uncharacteristic 2-for-7 performance from the free-throw line, as Amherst overcame an early eight-point deficit in the second half to claim its second consecutive NESCAC title over the Jumbos.
"It was a battle with a great Amherst team and really physical," said 15th-year Jumbos head coach Carla Berube. "On both ends, we were both fighting really hard to get good shots. It was a defensive battle and it just did not go our way, shots did not fall and we had some turnovers that were not great. We fouled a little too much too, but they made the plays down the stretch. Ali Doswell made incredible shots, great post ups and found her teammates well. We struggled a little bit on the offensive end."
The Jumbos (25-2, 9-1 in NESCAC) were led by a stellar performance by junior forward Melissa Baptista, as the Somerville, Massachusetts, native finished with a game-high 19 points and a team-high six boards. She went 7-for-14 from the floor and 5-for-10 from beyond the arc in 34 minutes.
Senior captain Michela North chipped in with 10 points on 5-for-9 shooting for the Jumbos, while sophomore guard/forward Emma McCarthy posted 10 points and seven boards for Amherst (27-0, 10-0 in NESCAC).
The Jumbos' built an 18-10 lead 14 seconds into the third on a jumper by North, as the eight-point lead was the largest of the game for the Jumbos. The Jumbos' held Doswell in check during the first half, holding her to two points on 1-for-5 shooting from the floor. There was no stopping her in the third, as she scored 11 points and Amherst won the quarter, 21-6.
Doswell established deep post position and used her left hand off a spin move with 8:35 left, and then she led junior guard/forward Hannah Hackley in transition for a layup with 7:43 left, cutting the Jumbos' lead to 18-14. On the ensuing Jumbos' possession, Doswell recorded a steal, and went all the way in for a layup, quickly trimming the deficit to 18-16 with 7:12 left. Doswell then isolated on the right post and sent a crisp pass to a cutting McCarthy, as the Shelton, Connecticut, native stepped up with an old-fashioned 3-point play, giving the hosts a 19-18 advantage with 6:39 on the clock.
|
| Photo Credits: Geoffrey Bolte, Clarus Studios Inc |
Baptista responded with a fadeaway jumper going to her left in the paint, which gave the Jumbos a 20-19 advantage with 6:15 remaining. Amherst ended the quarter on a 12-2 spurt, concluding with an open layup in transition by Doswell with 1:13 remaining, giving Amherst a 31-22 lead.
The Jumbos' fought to the end, as Baptista grabbed an offensive rebound off a missed foul shot by North, and then retreated to the 3-point line, and buried the trey from the left of the arc, bringing the Jumbos to within 35-31 with 1:49 remaining.
Amherst scored three consecutive points, and then Baptista drained another trey with 1:03 left, trimming the deficit to 38-34. Doswell put the game in safe hands with a contested mid-range jumper from the right baseline with 32 seconds left, giving the hosts a six-point cushion.
All well-informed spectators knew that baskets were going to be difficult to come by in this game, as Amherst defeated the Jumbos in a lowing-scoring contest, 36-35, on Feb. 4 at Cousens Gym. Amherst is ranked No. 1 among all Division III institutions in the country in scoring defense, allowing only 40.0 points per game, while the Jumbos are ranked No. 2 in the category (42.1 points).
The Jumbos' defense made the first stand in the game, allowing Amherst to only score 10 points in the first half, as the Jumbos' claimed a 16-10 lead heading into intermission behind six points by Baptista and four from North. The Jumbos' elite defense kept Amherst off the scoreboard for a period of 8:34, covering the final 2:34 of the first and the first six minutes of the second.
Amherst led, 7-6, at the end of the first, and then the Jumbos' outscored the hosts, 10-3, in the second frame. Baptista drilled a 3-pointer with 8:06 left in the second, giving the Jumbos a 9-7 advantage, which was their first lead since the opening minutes when they led 2-0.
Senior captain Josie Lee took a charge from senior guard Jaimie Renner with 2:28 left in the half, and then Lee drove hard to her right and finished in traffic with 57 seconds left, giving the visitors a 16-9 cushion.
The Jumbos will await an at-large berth into the 2017 NCAA Division III Tournament, as the seeds will come out on Monday. The squad has made three consecutive Final Four appearances, including reaching the national championship game in 2016.
"We are going to regroup and move past this, learn from it and hopefully make a great run in the NCAA Tournament," Berube said.
Written by Trevor Wenners, Athletic Communications Intern
#
