Women's Basketball
December 12, 2007
BRYANT HANDS NO. 15 STONEHILL FIRST LOSS OF THE SEASON, 59-53
Wednesday's win marks the second top-25 team to fall to the Bulldogs this season Boxscore
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Senior Lynne-Ann Kokoski |
SMITHFIELD, RI - On the back of a game-high 17 points from Kelsey O'Keefe (Warren, Mass.), the Bryant University women's basketball team handed previously undefeated No. 15 Stonehill College its first loss of the 2007-08 season, 59-53, at the Chace Athletic Center Wednesday night.
The faceoff between the Bulldogs (6-2, 5-2 Northeast-10) and the Skyhawks (9-1, 6-1) started out with back and forth misses from both sides, limiting the score to 2-2 through the first four minutes of play.
With Bryant up, 9-2, the Bulldogs and the Skyhawks started trading baskets for much of the half, until two successful free throws from Cara Johnson (Endicott, NY) put the home team up, 24-14, with three minutes remaining in the frame.
With just seconds to go before the break, rookie guard Siamone Bennett (Newburgh, NY) registered her third block of the half - this time shutting down Stonehill senior Meghan Driscoll - before the ball found its way to Courtney Schermerhorn (Lowell, Mass.). The sophomore nailed a shot from 3-point land to nearly double the Skyhawks on the scoreboard and head to the locker room with a 31-16 advantage.
Schermerhorn led the game at intermission with 11 first-half points and 4-for-5 shooting from the floor. The two teams were knotted for rebounds, 19-19, while Bryant outshot its opponent, 41.7 percent to Stonehill's 25.9.
But after limiting Stonehill to a mere 16 points in the opening half, the Skyhawks clawed their way back into the game before finally narrowing Bryant's lead to single digits, 38-30, off a trey from Megan Methven nine minutes into the second frame.
As the clock hit the 8-minute mark, sophomore Adrianne Mayshar (West Boylston, Mass.) hit a long jumper from the paint to up Bryant's lead back to double figures, 43-32.
With two minutes remaining, Erika Stupinski hit a big three, her fourth of the game, to bring the score to its closest since 8:48 into the first-half, 50-44. But as the seconds ticked down, so did the Bulldogs' lead. But it wouldn't be enough. With less than 10 seconds remaining, Kristin Mraz (Johnstown, NY) came up with a big steal and handoff that sent O'Keefe to the line with a 57-53 lead.
Her two successful attempts upped the Bulldogs' score to a 59-53 final, handing Stonehill its first loss of the 2007-08 season. The Bulldogs never trailed in the contest and owned a double-digit advantage for nearly half the game.
Of O'Keefe's 17 points, 12 came in second-half play, while nine came off free throws (9-for-10). Lynne-Ann Kokoski (Hatfield, Mass.) led the game with seven assists and five steals, while Bennett finished the day with a career-high four blocks. Kelsey Simonds led the Skyhawks with 15 points and a game-high eight rebounds.
Stonehill is the second top-25 team Bryant has beat this season, also topping then-No. 21 Bentley College, 56-55, on Dec. 4.
The Bulldogs will next travel to the University of Bridgeport on
Sunday afternoon to take on the Purple Knights in a 1:00 p.m.
non-conference matchup. The Bulldogs came away with a 78-57 win in
last season's contest are 8-4 all-time against Bridgeport.
