Box Score 
AMHERST – The Tufts University women's basketball team was defeated by the Amherst College Mammoths 48-45 in the NCAA Division III Tournament "Sweet 16" on Friday night, hosted by Amherst. The loss ends the season for the Jumbos with a 22-5 record.
Trailing by 11 (45-34) with four minutes left, Tufts would cut it to a one-possession game and had the ball with a chance to tie in the final minute. However, after a missed shot and an offensive rebound, the Jumbos turned the ball over and Amherst (24-3) padded their lead at the line to win it.
The Mammoths got the game started with a Courtney Resch layup just over 30 seconds in. They added to their lead with two free throws from Dani Valdez to go up 4-0 before Tufts got on the board with a Molly Ryan jumper off the glass. Maggie Russell followed that up with a jumper to tie the game at 4 with seven minutes remaining in the first quarter. Both sides played tight defense, limiting scoring opportunities, but Amherst especially found success defensively, finishing off the fourth quarter giving up just eight points on their way to a 15-8 lead heading into the second.
Reeya Patel started the second quarter off with a quick layup 15 seconds in for the hosts, but the defensive matchup continued, as neither team scored a basket for over two minutes when Angela Alibrandi sunk two free throws for the Jumbos, followed by a Russell jumper to make it a 17-12 game in favor of the Mammoths with 7:09 left in the first half. Amherst responded with back-to-back three-pointers by Resch and Patel, which were the first two three-pointers of the game for either team, to start a 7-0 run. Russell halted the run with a three-pointer of her own, but Resch nailed another one not long after in response. Both teams went a minute and a half without scoring any points until Amherst's AnLing Vera made a layup followed by a Ryan jumper and free throw. With 33 seconds left, Jade DuVal scored the last points of the half with a three-pointer to give Amherst a 31-18 lead heading into halftime.
Tufts clawed back into the game in the third quarter, outscoring the Mammoths 15-10 to bring themselves within eight points entering the fourth quarter. A Russell free throw 58 seconds into the quarter was the only point for almost four minutes until Gabrielle Zaffiro drained the first second-half field goal for either team with a three-pointer to give Amherst their largest lead if the night at 15 (34-19). This is when the Jumbos started to get hot, finishing the quarter on a 14-7 run with Sofia Rosa (pictured) scoring eight points during the stretch. Callie O'Brien hit a three-pointer with 50 seconds left to make it just a six-point game before Vera picked up two points on free throws to end the third quarter with a 41-33 lead for Amherst.
Much like the first three quarters, the fourth continued the theme of great defensive play, as both teams combined for just 19 points. Zaffiro got it started for the Mammoths with a mid-range jumper followed by a Ryan free throw for the Jumbos. DuVal scored on a jumper to make it an 11-point game (45-34) with 6:17 left in the game. The next basket did not come until Ryan got her third steal of the game and scored on a fast-break layup with 3:45 left, which kickstarted an 8-0 run for Tufts that included three points from both Rosa and Joelle Zelony to make it a three-point game (45-42) with just over one minute remaining. With no baskets for the next 54 seconds, Amherst sealed the victory with two free throws from Valdez and one from Maya Cwalina to make it 48-42. O'Brien hit a three-pointer at the buzzer for the 48-45 final.
Tufts was without Russell for most of the fourth after she foulded out with eight minutes to go.
Rosa led the way for the Jumbos, finishing with 11 points scored with 15 rebounds for the double-double. Russell and Ryan both finished with 10 points each with Ryan grabbing eight rebounds along with three steals and Russell finishing with six rebounds.
Zaffiro was the leading Mammoth scorer with 11 points with seven rebounds and two assists as Patel and Vera both finished with nine points. Vera grabbed eight rebounds and three steals while Patel finished with five rebounds. The Mammoths will host Trinity (Texas) in the Elite 8 on Saturday at 6 pm.
Written by Tim O'Brien, Athletic Communications Intern
