WATERBURY, Conn. – Since November 12
th, Post University Women's Basketball had been unbeatable at home. Going 11-0 since their season-opening loss against nationally-ranked Assumption University in the Drubner Center. Opening the CACC Tournament with a quarterfinals matchup against South Division fourth seed Goldey-Beacom College, who they defeated by 52 points at home earlier this year, the North Division top-seeded Eagles were upset by the Lightning, never leading or tying the affair which ended in a 68-64 defeat to bring Post's season to a close.
THE BASICS
N#1 Post University 64, S#4 Goldey-Beacom College 68
N#1 Post University (17-10)
S#4 Goldey-Beacom College (8-21)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Similar to what they did at home against Post, Goldey-Beacom stormed out to an early 8-0 lead as sophomore guard Rory Ciszkowski and senior forward Janiya Stevens hit back-to-back shots followed by two free throws from junior guard Julie McCarron. The Lightning would charge out to lead by as many as 10 points, 17-7, behind a balanced scoring effort from seven different players to lead 21-12 after one. Most notable for each side was the shooting percentage as Post was 4-for-19 (21.1%) from the floor compared to a 9-for-18 (50%) effort by Goldey-Beacom.
Continuing to shoot above 50% in the second quarter (6-of-11), the Lightning would maintain their lead which ballooned to as many as 11 points at the start of the frame. Enduring an 8-0 run from Post, junior forward Azuri Abraham's three ball gave Goldey-Beacom a cushion that would rise back up to 10 points again, 32-22, after another three from Abraham with 2:53 left. Graduate point guard
Dede Stevenson's jumper with 1:15 remaining brought the deficit down to five before freshman guard Katie Yoder's three sent the Lightning into halftime with a 35-27 lead. Ciszkowski, Stevens, and Abraham all had seven points each while graduate guard
TiJanae Simmons had a team-best eight points for Post.
13 points would be the largest edge that Goldey-Beacom took in the third quarter, leading Post 50-37 with 2:24 remaining after a pair of free throws by White, two mini 4-0 runs with Stevenson and junior guard
Naj White as well as graduate forward
Saule Kaupyte and graduate point guard
Le'Sandra Turner around a McCarron three cut the deficit down to single digits, 53-45, heading into the final 10 minutes of regulation. The Lightning were once again anchored by a high shooting quarter after going 7-for-16 (43.8%) from the field and another pair of threes.
Momentum from that mini-run to end the third spilled over into the fourth as back-to-back threes from Stevenson and White brought Post within two, 53-51, completing a 10-0 run. Trailing again by seven, graduate shooting guard
Maya Klein got her first basket of the game to help jumpstart a 6-0 run for the Eagles which was emphatically capped off by a pair of layups from White to make it a one-point game, 60-59.
That would be as close as Post would come to even tying the game as they finished the game having never led or never tied the score following the opening tip. Graduate forward
Trinity Bravo got Post within one, 65-64, with 1:42 left but a pair of turnovers by the Eagles and three made free throws for the Lightning willed them to a 68-64 upset over Post at the Drubner Center.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Dede Stevenson led Post University with 15 points on 4-for-12 shooting with 6-of-8 free throws made – Goldey-Beacom saw five players finish the game in double figures
- As a team, Post University finished 5-for-23 from three-point land which tied them for their third-fewest threes made in a game and fourth-worst shooting percentage from beyond the arc at 21.7%
- This is the first time Post University has lost at home since their season-opening loss to nationally-ranked Assumption University, 80-59, the Eagles were 11-0 at home since then
- After winning four straight games against Goldey-Beacom College, Post University has lost two straight games against the Lightning both this season
