AIC WOMEN'S HOOP UPENDED BY PACE IN NE-10 QUARTERS
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (February 27,
2007) - Hannah Sheppard finished with 17 points and 10
rebounds as sixth-seeded Pace University erased a 32-27 halftime
deficit and went on to post a 67-56 win over No. 3 seed American
International College in the quarterfinals of the Northeast-10
women's basketball tournament Tuesday evening at Butova
Gymnasium. The win, Pace's third over AIC this season,
improves it to 22-7 overall as they advance to play No. 5 seed
Stonehill in the semifinals at Southern Connecticut Friday.
AIC, ranked No. 2 in the Northeast Region and No. 20 nationally, is
now 21-7 and must await word of a possible NCAA Tournament at-large
berth. Those pairings will be released Sunday evening.
Sheppard was just 2-10 from the floor but went 11-12 at the free throw line. Liran Buchris finished with 14 points and six assists for the Setters, while Stephanie Klingele added 12 points and Ashley Wallace 10 for Pace. Alexis Castro (Chula Vista, Calif.) notched her 16th double-double of the season with 18 points and 14 rebounds for AIC, while Stacy Boisvert (Agawam, Mass.) added 10 points and seven boards. Jen Nnanna (Somerset, N.J.) registered eight points, five rebounds and six blocked shots.
Pace would outscore AIC 14-7 over the first 5:41 of the second half to take a 41-39 lead on a Klingele basket. The Yellow Jackets would respond with a 7-2 sput and a three-pointer by Jen Moussette (Southampton, Mass.) made it 46-43. The lead would see-saw several times before Pace took a 54-52 lead with 7:31 left on a Sheppard three, giving it the lead for good. AIC would have just one field goal the rest of the way, a Boisvert layup with 3:56 left that made it 58-55, but the Setters would seal the win by going 7-8 at the free throw line in the final minute.
AIC broke open what had been a close early game with a 13-2 run capped by a Castro basket at the 4:48 mark to take a 25-18 lead The Yellow Jackets would take their largest lead 1:30 before intermission on a pair of Nnanna free throws that made it 30-22. Five straight Pace points made it 30-27, but Boisvert would make it 32-27 at the break when her putback barely beat the buzzer.
Pace made 21 of its 23 free throw attempts for the game while the
Yellow Jackets were 15-20 at the charity stripe. AIC
outrebounded Pace 41-33 but was haunted by 16 turnovers, as
compared to 10 giveaways for the Setters. The guests also
limited American International to 24.1% shooting in the second
half.