EASTON, Mass. – Seniors Tori Lehr (Cohasset, Mass.) and Allie Jones (So. Kingstown, R.I.) each recorded double-doubles and classmate Briana Jones (White Plains, N.Y.) poured in a team-high game 20 points as the Saint Anselm College women's basketball team closed their regular season with a 70-58 victory against Stonehill College on Tuesday evening at Merkert Gymnasium.
The Hawks, who sweep the regular-season series from Stonehill for the first time since 1998-99 after losing 19 of 20 entering the season, win for the fifth time in six games to improve to 15-11 on the year, including 11-10 in Northeast-10 play. Saint Anselm has earned the No. 5 seed in the Northeast Division – its first Northeast-10 Championship berth since 2010-11 – and will travel to Le Moyne College, the No. 4 seed in the Southwest Division, Friday night at 7 p.m. The Hawks dropped a 55-54 decision at Le Moyne on Jan. 22 in the only meeting between the two teams. The winner takes on undefeated and top-ranked Bentley, the No. 1 seed in the Northeast Division, in Waltham, Mass., on Sunday at 3 p.m. The Skyhawks drop to 17-8, 14-7 NE-10.
Lehr notched her sixth straight double-double and 14th of the season with 18 points (8-15 FG; 2-3 FT) and a career-high 16 rebounds. Allie Jones scored 14 points (6-7 FG; 2-3 FG) and pulled down 11 boards for her third double-double on the year. It marked the first time the Hawks produced two double-doubles in the same game since Megan Howard and Curran Leighton captured the feat against Merrimack College on Nov. 30, 2011. Briana Jones, meanwhile, was an efficient 7 of 12 from the floor, including 2 of 3 from deep, and a perfect 4 of 4 at the line, to go along with seven rebounds.
Mary Louise Dixon tallied 23 points, five steals, four assists and four rebounds for Stonehill.
Saint Anselm jumped out to a 4-0 lead and led wire-to-wire as nine points from Lehr fueled a 17-6 run over the game's first 7:15. Stonehill responded with an 11-2 counter run – with four points each from Dixon and Amy Pelletier, as well as three from Tori Faieta – to trim its deficit to a pair at 19-17 with 8:16 remaining in the opening half.
The Hawks held strong, however, ripping off 10 straight points, including five from Allie Jones, to open their lead to 29-17 with 4:03 to go. Stonehill would climb back within eight, but a layup from freshman Aliyah Smith (Medford, N.Y.) just before the buzzer sent Saint Anselm into the break with a 35-25 advantage.
After an Asia Ewing layup just 11 seconds into the second half cut it back to eight, a 3-pointer from senior Kierra Moore (Albany, N.Y.) sparked a 6-0 spurt that pushed the lead to 41-27 just 3:01 in. The Skyhawks would again whittle the deficit to eight, but a 12-3 stretch – powered by eight points from Bri Jones – gave the Hawks their largest lead of the night at 57-40 with 8:15 to play.
A 7-0 run later in the half would once again pull Stonehill within eight, but the Hawks responded once more, this time with a 9-2 run that iced the game at 68-53 with 28 seconds on the clock.
Moore kicked in seven points (2-5 FG; 1-1 3-FG; 2-2 FT), three rebounds and three assists, while Smith chipped in a career-high five points (2-3 FG; 1-2 3-FG).
Saint Anselm shot a season-best 55.1 percent (27-49), including 50 percent (4-8) from long distance, while holding Stonehill to just 34.8 percent (23-66) shooting, including 25 percent (6-24) from deep. Both teams shot well from the stripe, but the Hawks made 12 of 14, while the Skyhawks hit 6 of 7. Saint Anselm also crushed Stonehill on the glass, 43-24, and held a 30-20 advantage in the paint. Stonehill turned it over just eight times, while forcing 22 Saint Anselm giveaways for an 18-8 margin in points off turnovers.
The fifth-seeded (NE) Hawks return to action Friday, Feb. 28 at 7 p.m. when they travel to take on fourth-seeded (SW) Le Moyne in a Northeast-10 First Round matchup. Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department by liking us on Facebook and following us on Twitter @STAHawks.
