Early Defensive Effort Pushes Gulls to CCC Semifinals

Talk about Endicott women's basketball on Twitter: Tweet \#gogulls

BEVERLY, Mass. – Thanks to a stifling defensive effort in the first half and a balanced scoring attack, Endicott women's basketball has booked a trip to the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) tournament semifinals. The fourth seeded Gulls upended \#5 Roger Williams 57-49 Tuesday night in front of a passionate crowd at MacDonald Gymnasium.

The Gulls return to the CCC semifinals for the first time since 2010, after being eliminated in the first round last year. Endicott will make their eighth trip in the semifinals but are still looking for their first CCC title.  The Gulls are now 3-0 in their postseason meetings with Roger Williams since 2003.

Endicott had five players, including four of their starters, contribute double-digit scoring, with Jordan Ferland (Charlestown, N.H.) posting a double-double, with 10 points and 10 rebounds. The Gulls held the Hawks without a field goal for almost nine minutes in the first half while building a 20-point advantage.

In a game in which both teams started slow, Endicott held a 9-5 advantage with seven mintues played in the first half. They extended their lead to seven points on a three-pointer by senior Nicole Heffernan (Londonderry, N.H.), and then ratcheted up an already phenomenal defensive effort. With a 15-8 lead in hand, Endicott went on a 14-1 run, holding Roger Williams scoreless for seven minutes before Hannah Pirez (Bolton, Mass.) broke the streak with a made free-throw.

Heffernan made another three-pointer along the way, and she and freshman Kayleen Whall (Foxboro, Mass.) each had eight points in the first half, as Endicott shot 36 % to just 17 % for the visitors.

Endicott was poised to go into the locker room leading by 20 points, with a 31-11 advantage and just 1.3 seconds remaining, but Pirez fired a home-run pass that found Roger Williams guard Elizabeth Kilzi (Waverly, Pa.). Kilzi drained a very deep three-pointer, their first make from downtown on seven attempts, and trimmed the margin to 17 points at the break.

The visitors found their shooting in the second half, firing at 50 % (14-28) in an attempt at a comeback. Endicott held a steady lead that hovered around 17 points until the seven minute mark, in which the Hawks went on a 17-6 run to pull within six points. Paige Condon (Westwood, Mass.) started the run by converting a three-point play before Kaitlyn Bovee (Berlin, Conn.) sank a three-pointer to pull the lead back to 11 at 47-36. Ari Renwick (Westwood, Mass.) hit two running layups and then, on Roger Williams' next possession, found Bovee for another triple that made the score 53-47 in favor of Endicott.

With the Gulls up by just six and under a minute to play, Endicott junior captain Jen McBrien (Medfield, Mass.) delivered arguably the most important play of the night. McBrien picked off a pass from Kilzi and took it the length of the floor for a layup, forcing Roger Williams into desperation fouls. Jen White (Lisbon, N.H.) sank two free-throws down the stretch to seal the victory for the Gulls.

Heffernan, Whall and Samntha Crough (Cohasset, Mass.) each had 11 points in the game, with Whall grabbing nine rebounds. McBrien, who had ten points in the contest, Ferland and Sarah Robinson (Norwich, Vt.) each contributed two assists, while Whall, Crough, and White each had a block.

For Roger Williams, Alexandria Lanieri (Port Jefferson, N.Y.) led the Hawks with a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds. Lanieri stuffed the stat sheet with a steal, a block and two assists, while Pirez led all players with three helpers.

Bovee scored 10 points and grabbed eight rebounds, while Renwick came off the bench to score 9 points and also register an assist and two blocks.

Both teams would end up shooting 33% from the field, but Endicott hit 3-6 from downtown, compared to just 3-14 (21 %) for Roger Williams, who also missed 11 attempts at the free-throw line.

Endicott improves to 16-10 on the year and will await the winner of the \#1-\#8 game between the University of New England and Nichols College. If the top seeded Nor'easters win, Endicott will play on Thursday night in Biddeford, Maine.

The Hawks of Roger Williams end their 2012 CCC campaign with a 14-13 overall record.