ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – A strong defensive performance from the Eckerd women's basketball team held Nova Southeastern to shooting just 25.8 percent from field goal range as the Tritons routed the Sharks, 68-50, Saturday afternoon at the McArthur Center.
An 11-0 stretch to open the game and an 11-point third quarter from
Mikayla Kuehne aided the Tritons in their 11th Sunshine State Conference victory.
HOW IT ENDED
Final: Eckerd 68, Nova Southeastern 50
Records: Eckerd 15-5 (11-3 SSC); Nova Southeastern 10-11 (6-8 SSC)
KEY MOMENTS
- Abby Whiteye laid in a basket in the first minute to send Eckerd on a 14-2 run over the first four minutes of the quarter. The Tritons continued to dominate throughout the first quarter as they took an early 18-9 lead.
- The Sharks opened the second quarter with three straight points, but Mar Ibern answered with a triple to hold EC's lead at nine points. The teams traded baskets throughout the remainder of the quarter as the Tritons took an 11 point lead at 30-19 heading into halftime.
- Nova Southeastern's Sarah Kelly hit a 3-pointer as the Sharks opened the second half with a 6-1 run. Midway through the third quarter, Annie Santucci hit another triple for the Sharks as they cut Eckerd's lead down to four points. Following a pair of Zoe Richards layups, EC quickly answered with an 11-3 stretch to build its lead back to 12 points. The Tritons continued to add on their lead in the final minute with a 7-1 run to end the quarter with a 55-38 lead.
- The Tritons hit three consecutive 3-pointers to open the final quarter. Neither team put up a basket for five straight minutes but with 2:10 remaining, Ibern and Maya Price laid in back-to-back buckets to give Eckerd its largest lead of the game with 27. The Sharks hit three straight triples in the final two minutes, but it wasn't enough to overcome the deficit as time expired.
NOTES AND NUMBERS
- Kuehne led EC with 14 points, 11 off which came in the third quarter.
- Octavia Loll and Richards added 13 points apiece.
- The Tritons dominated the boards with a 48-34 advantage. Richards and Whiteye led the Tritons with eight boards each while Loll pulled down seven.
- Loll had a season-high two blocks against the Sharks
- The Tritons shot 43.1 percent from field goal range compared to Nova Southeastern's 25.8 percent.
- Eckerd has beaten the Sharks in their last five matchups.
QUOTABLE
"We had a great start to today's game after coming off the bye midweek. Our interior defense was good, and our team rebounding was excellent," said head coach
Paul Honsinger. "We continue to share the ball well offensively with another balanced attack. It was a very good sweep game for us."
UP NEXT
Eckerd stays in St. Petersburg as they host Florida Tech on Wednesday at 5:30 PM.
