ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – After holding Saint Leo to just 18 points at halftime, the Eckerd women's basketball team came up with several key stops late as they held on to defeat Saint Leo 61-51 Wednesday evening at the McArthur Center.
The Tritons held Saint Leo to just a 34.6 field goal percentage and 21 points below its season scoring average.
HOW IT ENDED
Final: Eckerd 61, Saint Leo 51
Records: Eckerd 12-4 (8-2 SSC); Saint Leo 8-10 (4-6 SSC)
KEY MOMENTS
- Abby Whiteye opened the scoring for the Tritons with a layup inside the first ten seconds and Mikayla Kuehne followed with a 3-pointer as EC took a quick lead, which they would maintain for the rest of the game. Alex Button answered for the Lions with a jumper, but back-to-back layups from Zoe Richards built Eckerd's lead to seven. Brooke Juday hit a triple off the glass and Whiteye followed with another layup as EC went up by 12 points. Saint Leo answered with two consecutive layups, but the Tritons remained in control 16-8 to end the period.
- Eneritz Larranaga hit a jumper to open the second quarter as the teams traded baskets in the first two minutes. Richards hit a triple sending Eckerd on a 7-1 run over the next two minutes as the Tritons extended their lead to 14 points. Kuehne laid in another basket followed by a layup and a free throw from Larranaga as EC headed into halftime up 32-18.
- The Lions opened the second half strong with an early 7-2 run. Richards and Whiteye answered for Eckerd with back-to-back layups. Saint Leo went on another 7-2 run to cut its deficit down to eight points, but Octavia Loll answered with a triple to put EC back up by 11. Button hit another jumper for Saint Leo that led to a 7-4 stretch to end the third quarter as Eckerd held a 47-39 lead.
- Gina Brierley dropped in a triple for the Lions to bring them within five points, but another 3-pointer from Whiteye and a jumper from Loll pushed Eckerd's lead back up to nine. The Lions answered with five straight points, cutting the Triton lead down to four with three minutes remaining. A 3-pointer from Whiteye and a fast-break layup from Loll helped secure the victory for the Tritons as they went on to a 10-point victory.
NOTES AND NUMBERS
- Loll led EC with 15 points and Whiteye followed with 14.
- Whiteye recorded her third career double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
- Zoe Richards nearly missed a double-double with nine points and eight boards.
- At the midway point of the SSC schedule, Eckerd sits in second place in the conference following its fourth consecutive win.
- The Tritons have defeated Saint Leo in their last 10 consecutive matchups.
QUOTABLE
"Our game plan tonight was focused around the defense and I thought we did a great job bringing the energy needed to the defensive end," said head coach
Paul Honsinger. "We held a good offensive team to 20 points below their average and managed to get big stops late when we needed it most."
UP NEXT
The Tritons stay at home as they host Palm Beach Atlantic on Saturday at 2:00 PM.
