ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – A strong second quarter gave the Eckerd women's basketball team a 21-point lead over Florida Southern at halftime. The Tritons then cruised in the second half as they went on to a 74-60 victory in the Sunshine State Conference semifinals Thursday evening at the McArthur Center.
EC outscored Florida Southern 21-9 in the second quarter, aided by a 15-5 run to gain a commanding lead that they held onto.
Abby Whiteye led the Tritons with 21 points, and
Octavia Loll posted her second straight double-double to lead the team to the SSC Tournament Championship for the second consecutive year.
HOW IT ENDED
Final: Eckerd 74, Florida Southern 60
Records: Eckerd 23-5; Florida Southern 19-11
KEY MOMENTS
- Florida Southern won the tipoff, but a block by Zoe Richards sent the Tritons down the other end of the court as Eneritz Larranaga drained a triple to open the scoring for EC. The two teams traded points, but a 3-pointer from Mikayla Kuehne with 4:57 remaining in the first period gave the Tritons a four-point lead. Eckerd continued to build on its lead with a layup from Loll that sent EC on a 9-2 run -capped by a Maya Price triple with two seconds remaining- into the end of the quarter as the Tritons took a 22-13 favor.
- Richards laid in a basket to open the second quarter as EC went on a 15-5 stretch over the first six and a half minutes. Whiteye hit a triple with 1:35 remaining followed by a Larranaga steal and assist to Loll as she laid in a bucket with time expiring in the first half as EC took a commanding 43-22 lead.
- The Moccasins laid in a basket to start the third quarter, but Whiteye answered with a layup to hold on to the 21 point lead. With 7:58 remaining in the quarter, Kuehne drained a 3-pointer to give EC its largest lead of the game with 22. The teams battled back-and-forth for the rest of the third as Florida Southern was only able to cut the deficit down to 17 points (58-41) as they headed into the fourth.
- Loll kicked off the fourth quarter with six straight points for the Tritons to take a 64-43 lead. The Moccasins answered with a 14-2 run that cut Eckerd's edge down to 10 points with 3:46 remaining in the game. EC held its composure in the final minutes, going 4-for-4 from the free throw line and as they held off the late Mocs push.
NOTES AND NUMBERS
- Whiteye led EC with 21 points, along with four others – Loll (12 points), Maya Price (12), Kuehne (11), and Larranaga (10) - in double digits.
- Loll posted her fifth career and second straight double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds.
- Larranaga nearly missed a double-double with 10 points and eight boards.
- Eckerd dominated the boards with a 38-27 advantage.
- The Tritons scored 14-second chance points, compared to Florida Southern's four.
- Price grabbed a career-high three steals while tying her career-high with four blocks.
- EC advances to the SSC Championship for the third time in four years.
QUOTABLE
"This was an impressive win for us tonight. Once again, the crowd support and atmosphere was terrific," said head coach
Paul Honsinger. "We dictated the game on both sides of the court. Our defensive energy was outstanding, and it provided a number of transition opportunities. We also shared the ball great and knocked down our open shots to extend our lead. I'm very proud of our effort and execution. We are looking forward to Sunday."
UP NEXT
The Tritons head over the Howard Frankland Bridge as they take on Tampa in the SSC Championship Sunday at 1:00 PM.
