WINTER PARK, Fla. – Eneritz Larranaga tied her career-high of 19 points to lead the Eckerd women's basketball team to a 74-66 victory over Rollins at the Alfond Sports Center Saturday afternoon. The Tritons have won three straight SSC contests as they sit second place in the conference standings.
HOW IT ENDED
Final: Eckerd 74, Rollins 66
Records: Eckerd 11-4 (7-2 SSC); Rollins 10-7 (3-6 SSC)
KEY MOMENTS
- Abby Whiteye hit a 3-pointer to open up the game's scoring, followed by a free throw and a jumper from Larranaga to give EC a four-point lead. The teams traded baskets over the next three minutes until Mikayla Kuehne laid in a basket followed by a jumper from Maya Price to put Eckerd up by five. Whiteye hit a triple one minute later, sending the Tritons on an 8-3 run to end the quarter as they took a 19-13 lead.
- Rollins opened the second quarter with a 9-2 stretch giving them a 22-21 lead. Brooke Juday ended the run with a 3-pointer, but the Tars answered with 11 straight points over the next three minutes to take a nine-point lead. Four consecutive EC free throws followed by a layup from Octavia Loll just before the half pulled the Tritons within three points at 33-30 at the break.
- Eckerd went on a 10-4 run over the first two minutes of the third quarter with Larranaga accounting for eight points during the stretch. Loll laid in a basket midway through the quarter to ignite a 10-2 run as EC continued to build on its lead. Rollins strung together a 7-2 run to end the quarter, but the Tritons still held a 54-48 favor.
- Similar to the start of the third, Eckerd opened the fourth period with an 8-2 run to push out by 10 points. Yari Martinez-Toro dropped in a triple to cut down Eckerd's lead to eight, but five straight points from Kuehne and a jumper from Larranaga gave the Tritons their largest lead of the game at 16. The teams traded points over the next minute until the Tars hit back-to-back 3-pointers. However, the late push wasn't enough as Eckerd came away with the eight-point victory.
NOTES AND NUMBERS
- Larranaga led Eckerd with 19 points, which ties her career-high. Whiteye and Kuehne added 15 points each and Loll posted 13.
- Whiteye led the Tritons on the boards, pulling down seven. Maya Price and Zoe Richards followed with five each.
- Whiteye also grabbed three steals.
- Eckerd has topped the Tars in their last five matchups.
- The Tritons scored 27 points from turnovers compared to Rollins' seven.
- EC scored 32 points in the paint while the Tars had 10 points.
QUOTABLE
"We shared the ball well today and battled hard on the boards inside," said head coach
Paul Honsinger. "We showed good poise in the first half to close the lead after an offensive flurry by Rollins. Our offense came alive in the second half and we shared the ball well. It was a good win to end the week."
UP NEXT
The Tritons are back at home as they host Saint Leo on Wednesday at 5:30 PM.
