ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – With five Tritons contributing double-digit scores and a 20-9 second quarter, the Eckerd women's basketball team defeated Saint Leo 74-60 for the season sweep over the Lions Wednesday night at the Marion Bowman Center.
Mikayla Kuehne led the Tritons with 20 points, nearly tying her career-high of 21, followed by
Eneritz Larranaga (12),
Zoe Richards (12),
Octavia Loll (10), and
Abby Whiteye (10) reaching double-figures.
HOW IT ENDED
Final: Eckerd 74, Saint Leo 60
Records: Eckerd 20-5 (16-3 SSC); Saint Leo 14-13 (10-9 SSC)
KEY MOMENTS
- Loll laid in a basket inside the first 20 seconds of the game to open the scoring for the Tritons. With 6:20 remaining in the first quarter, Kuehne drained a triple to give EC its largest lead of the quarter with five points. The teams battled back and forth into the final seconds of the first period as Whiteye hit a 3-pointer to tie the game at 21-21.
- The Lions and the Tritons traded a pair of triples to open the second quarter. A 3-pointer from Kuehne ignited a 17-3 run over the remaining 8:21 left in the half as Eckerd took control of the game with a 41-30 lead at halftime.
- Saint Leo opened the third stanza with an 11-2 stretch as they cut the deficit down to just two points at 43-41. Richards sunk two free throws and then hit a triple to extend the EC lead back to seven points. The Tritons hung on to their lead as Loll hit a jumper with 1:16 left followed by two Larranaga free throws to give Eckerd a 56-47 lead heading into the fourth.
- The Tritons used an 8-0 run to open the final quarter as they built their lead up to 17 points for their largest lead of the game. The teams traded baskets as Saint Leo was unable to cut the deficit below 12 points as Eckerd went on to win 74-60.
NOTES AND NUMBERS
- Kuehne's team-leading 20 points was a point shy of her career-high of 21 points, set against Lynn (Jan. 4, 2020).
- Whiteye led EC on the boards as she narrowly missed a double-double with eight rebounds and 10 points. Loll and Mar Ibern added six boards each.
- Eckerd recorded 20 points from turnovers compared to Saint Leo's eight.
- The Tritons scored 38 points in the paint while Saint Leo only posted 22.
- EC has now beaten the Lions in their last 12 straight matchups.
- The win marked Eckerd's 20th of the season as they have now recorded four straight 20 win seasons.
- It was also EC's 16th SSC win of the season, which ties the most SSC wins by a team in a single season.
QUOTABLE
"We stayed true to our strengths tonight and executed our offense when we needed it most." said head coach
Paul Honsinger. "Ultimately, we got the stops we needed and chained off a good run midway through the fourth quarter to get the separation we needed. I was proud of our fight."
UP NEXT
The Tritons are back home this Saturday as they host Rollins at 2:00 PM as they close out the regular season at the McArthur Center.
