ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The Eckerd women's basketball team dominated Puerto Rico-Mayaguez 109-57 in a decisive win Monday night at the McArthur Center.
In their first game of the season, the Tritons broke the program single-game scoring record breaking the previous mark of 106. EC also broke the record for points in a quarter with 37 in the third.
HOW IT ENDED
Final: Eckerd 109, Puerto Rico Mayaguez 57
Records: Eckerd 1-0; Puerto Rico Mayaguez 0-1
KEY MOMENTS
- The Tritons pulled ahead quickly with a 9-3 run to open the game. Puerto Rico's Victoria Suarez immediately answered the stretch with two triples to tie the score at 9-9. A layup by Zoe Richards followed by a 3-pointer from Mar Ibern sparked a 16-3 scoring run for EC to finish the first quarter up 25-12.
- Malave Caraballo opened the second quarter with a triple for the Janes, and Clara Granlund answered for Eckerd with a 3-pointer to put the Tritons up 28-15. Following a jumper from Puerto Rico, Granlund buried another 3-pointer to set the Tritons on a 13-4 run into halftime with a 44-21 lead.
- The teams traded triples at the start of the third with Abby Whiteye and Mikayla Kuehne, both knocking one down to give the Tritons a 50-24 lead. With just under eight and half minutes left in the quarter, Whiteye buried another 3-pointer leading Eckerd on an 18-2 run. Janes' Caraballo drove into the paint and laid one in to end the streak, but the Tritons continued to dominate, ending the quarter with a 45-point lead (81-36).
- Eneritz Larranaga kicked off the fourth quarter with a layup as the Tritons put up six straight points. Maya Price laid in the 100th point for Eckerd at the 4:20 mark and recorded a free-throw to break the record in the final minute as Eckerd won 109-57.
NOTES AND NUMBERS
- Eckerd broke the program scoring record tonight with 109 points. The previous record was 106, reached twice against Albany State (GA) (Jan. 2, 2019) and Puerto Rico-Cayey (Nov. 24, 2002). Eckerd has only eclipsed the century mark four times in program history.
- The Tritons also broke the record for points in a quarter with 37 points in the third. The previous record was also against Albany State (GA) (Jan. 2, 2019) as EC put up 34 in the opening quarter.
- Eckerd distributed the ball efficiently, recording 31 assists as a team, nearly breaking the record of 32 set in 2002.
- Abby Whiteye scored a career-high 21 points while Maya Price recorded 17 points, followed by Octavia Loll with 16 points. Eckerd had seven players with double-digit points.
- Zoe Richards led the Tritons with eight boards, followed by Mikayla Kuehne, who recorded seven.
- EC shot 66.7 percent from field goal range and 50 percent from beyond the arc.
QUOTABLE
"On behalf of our team, I want to thank all of the fans, students, faculty, staff, and administrators who attended our first home contest. It was great having their support. Every player contributed in tonight's win. It was good to see us share the ball and post seven players in double figures. We had a balanced attack, and we hope to carry that forward on the road for our first conference opponent this Saturday." – Coach
Paul Honsinger
UP NEXT
The Tritons go on the road to take on Palm Beach Atlantic Saturday at 1:00 PM.
