NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Junior
Tatum Forbes (Pawtucket, R.I) and senior
Melanie Hoyt (Stamford, N.Y.) paced the Hawks with 17 points a-piece as Saint Anselm fell on a heartbreaking buzzer beater, 67-65 on Saturday.
UP NEXT:
- Saint Anselm rounds out the Southern Conn. State Tournament on Sunday, playing their second game of the season against non-conference opponent Georgian Court with a 1:30PM tip off time.
Score: Saint Anselm 65, Mercy 67
Records: Saint Anselm 0-1, Mercy 1-0
Location: New Haven, Conn. (James Moore Fieldhouse)
Date: Saturday, November 9, 2024
Attendance: 50
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Saint Anselm kicked off its season with a Tatum Forbes (Pawtucket, R.I) drive and score, stopping the Mercy opening run at 5-2. The Hawks would find themselves pushing into the lead, 12-7, behind freshman Addisen Sulikowski's (Saco, Maine) first collegiate three-pointer. Mercy would battle back into the competition with substitutions breathing new life into their offensive strike. A rebound and layup from Molly Boek would bring the game to within one, 15-16, before Saint Anselm extended their lead to three to end the quarter as Anna Nelson (Gorham, Maine) finished in the paint.
- The second quarter would begin in favor of Mercy as they countered a response taking the lead back on a run highlighted by strong shooting from Boek. Senior Melanie Hoyt (Stamford, N.Y.) proved her presence in the paint to end the run. Through defensive stops and aggressive attacking the Hawks would keep the game within reach going into halftime as Hoyt and Forbes scored back-to-back buckets in the paint.
- Sulikowski started the second half for Saint Anselm scoring another three-point shot, while teammate Katie Lemanski (Haymarket, Va.) would find a driving layup fall. Amani Abuhatab would counter for Mercy tabbing the first of two three point makes for the home team. Forbes countered, pushing pace for the Hawks and finding Lemanski on a strong cut to the rim cutting the Mercy led to two, 45-47. Mercy would extend their lead as the quarter came to an end off of another three point try from Abuhatab.
- Saint Anselm's shooting would take off to start the final quarter of play as Forbes and Elise MacNair (Old Orchard Beach, Maine.) would tally back-to-back triples, giving the Hawks a 57-55 advantage. In response Angelina Barrera would go on her own 6-0 run in the paint for Mercy. In a matching response to their post presence Hoyt tallied another strong move in the paint giving the Hawks their final lead of the evening. Senior Marta Gomez Pons (Sevilla, Spain) would attempt to force the game into extra time, scoring the tying bucket with six seconds remaining, but a dagger from Abuhatab as the buzzer sounded secured Mercy's 67-65 victory.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Saint Anselm shot 28-63 from the floor on the afternoon, a 44.4% mark. From distance the team would struggle, finding only four makes on 19 attempts. Mercy would outshot the Hawks tabbing 48.3% from the floor (28-58) and shooting 40% from behind the arch matching the four makes mark on only ten attempts.
- The Hawks converted on 5 of 7 of their free throw attempts (71.4%), while Mercy went 7-for-10 (70%) from the charity stripe.
- The battle of the boards was fairly even between the two teams as the Hawks pulled down 29 boards, and Mercy tabbed 30. Mercy's bench provided the team with 21 points while the Hawks found just six points from their bench. The Hawks dominated the paint scoring 48 points within close distance and Mercy scored just 32.
- Saint Anselm committed 12 turnovers in the game compared to the 17 committed by Mercy, with the Hawks scoring 17 points off of those turnovers. The visiting Hawks also dominated the steals column, notching 11 compared to the home team's 5.
- Hoyt (8-15 FG, 1-3 FT) and Forbes (7-15 FG, 1-3 3PT, 2-2 FT) each scored 17 points for Saint Anselm. The pair each grabbed a team high eight rebounds, while teammate Lemanski dished out six assists. Lemanski added ten points on the day, while Sulikowski tabbed eight points in 23 minutes of action.
- Jaclyn Stanavich led Mercy with 21 points, while Barrera added 14 of her own.
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