NORTON, Mass. — The Wheaton College (Mass.) women's basketball team fell to visiting Emmanuel College (Mass.), 72-51, this evening at Emerson Gymnasium on the Wheaton campus in Norton, Mass.
The Lyons slip to 4-10 on the season, while the Saints improve to 8-4.
The win for Emmanuel Head Coach, Andy Yosinoff, snapped a tie with longtime former University of Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw for sole possession of seventh on the all-time victories list among all women's basketball college head coaches, regardless of division. Yosinoff is already the all-time wins leader among NCAA Division III women's basketball coaches with 937.
Emmanuel came up with 22 steals in the game and forced Wheaton into 31 turnovers. The Saints committed 19 miscues themselves to contribute to a combined total of 50 turnovers in the game from both teams. Emmanuel caught fire from the field in the second half, owning a 58.3% (14-24) clip as part of a 50.8% (30-59) shooting effort for the game. The Lyons shot 36.4% (16-44) for the game, despite a second quarter that saw the home team convert 58.3% (7-12) of their shots.
Senior forward Regan Keyter (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) led all scorers with 23 points and added six boards and a steal for Wheaton, while junior forward Cheyenne Colbert (Brookline, N.H.) netted 12 points, pulled down eight rebounds, handed out an assist and blocked a shot.
Junior guard Geanna Bryant (Boston, Mass.) nearly posted a double-double with 14 points and nine steals in addition to five rebounds and six assists for the Saints. Sophomore forward Tyra Blye (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) netted 12 points, grabbed seven rebounds, came up with four steals and doled out a pair of assists. Junior forward Kalia Saunders (Larksville, Pa.) contributed with 14 points on 7-9 shooting to go with two rebounds, an assist, a block and a steal in 20 minutes off the bench.
Sophomore guard Lia Kruman (Burbank, Calif.) made a layup to increase the Saints' margin to 26-13 with 7:29 to go in the second quarter. The Lyons roared back, ripping off 11 unanswered points, including four each from Keyter and first year forward Katelyn Cadmus (Pawacatuck, Conn.), to cut the difference to just a bucket at 26-24 with 4:13 remaining in the second quarter. Cadmus made another layup just over a minute later to keep it a two-point game for Wheaton at 28-26 with 2:54 showing. Emmanuel scored the next six points, including a fastbreak layup off a turnover from first year guard Shea Canavan (Queensbury, N.Y.), to give the Saints some breathing room at 34-26 with 1:22 left in the first half. The Lyons proved to be resilient with the final four points of the half, including a reverse layup from Keyter as the buzzer sounded to make it 34-30 at the intermission.
Despite the Lyons turning the ball over 19 times in the opening half, Emmanuel held just a four-point halftime margin.
The Saints put together a dominant 18-1 run to open the second half to effectively put the game out of reach with a 52-31 lead at the 3:24 mark of the third quarter. Krumian scored the last four points of the outburst for Emmanuel. Wheaton scored six straight points, including four from Keyter, to cut the deficit to 52-37 with 1:52 showing on the third quarter clock, before Saunders made a layup for the final points of the period to give the visitors a 54-37 cushion after three quarters.
First year guard Kendyl Ouimette (East Greenbush, N.Y.) converted one of two three throws to push the Saints' lead to 55-37, before the Lyons scored seven of the next nine points, led by four points from Keyter, to pull within 57-44 with 7:04 to go in the quarter. Emmanuel put together a 13-2 stretch, capped by a three-pointer from senior forward Megan Reilly (Southbury, Conn.), to give the Saints their largest lead at 70-46 with 2:31 remaining in the contest. Wheaton never got closer than within 21 for the rest of the game.
Keyter buried a triple early in the opening quarter to pull the Lyons even at 3-3 with 7:01 showing on the first quarter clock. Emmanuel went on a 15-4 run, including four points from Saunders, to take an 18-7 advantage with 83 seconds left in the quarter. Wheaton netted the final three points of the period, including a free throw from junior guard Daniella MacDonald (Newtown, Pa.), to make it 18-10.
The Saints return to the court on January 14 when they host Great Northeast Athletic Conference foe Albertus Magnus College at 5:30 p.m. in the Jean Yawkey Center, while Wheaton heads to Worcester, Mass. on January 17 to open the New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference slate against Worcester Polytechnic Institute at 3:00 p.m.
