PORTALES, N.M. - After a slow start, the Tritons' third-quarter surge from Nicole Scales led the No. 5 Eckerd women's basketball team to a 72-64 win over Eastern New Mexico at the Greyhound Arena Wednesday night.
The Greyhounds jumped out to a fiery start, with a five-point margin on the Tritons in the early goings of the first quarter. A pair of layups from Maya Price narrowed the deficit to one as the quarter winded down. A three-point play by Lauryn Vieira put the Tritons up by five towards the end of the first quarter, ending with a 17-13 lead. The home team came back to tie with just over five minutes left in the second quarter before the Tritons began to pull away. Three 3-pointers from Sofia Persson (2) and Cirkeline Rimdal gave the Tritons a nine-point lead, 33-24, going into the halftime break.
Scales scored 14 points in the third quarter, with four 3-pointers and two made free throws. Vieira added another two for the Tritons on a layup, as they were the only two players to score for Eckerd in the third quarter, taking a 49-39 favor to end the frame. Scales capped off a momentous night with another 3-point jumper in the final quarter, along with three made free throws as EC cruised in the final period. Rimdal sealed the deal for the Tritons with a late free throw to secure the 72-64 victory over the Greyhounds.
HOW IT ENDED
FINAL: No. 5 Eckerd 72, Eastern New Mexico 64
RECORDS: Eckerd 4-1 (1-0 SSC); Eastern New Mexico 1-2 (0-0 LSC)
NOTES AND NUMBERS
- Scales led the Tritons with 20 points on the night, scoring 14 in the third quarter.
- Persson and Price each tallied 13 points. Persson also collected eight boards.
- Price's three blocks tonight increase her career total to 102, moving her to fifth in program history.
- Eckerd converted 21 points off Eastern New Mexico's turnovers.
- Vieira flirted with a triple-double, adding 10 assists, eight rebounds, seven points, and three steals.
UP NEXT
Eckerd returns to the Sunshine State on Saturday to face off against No. 9 Bentley at the University of Tampa at 2:00 PM.
