The Setters will survive and advance.
It’s on to the NE-10 Championships Second Round. At home, Pace defeated the Adelphi University Panthers 55-46.
Ciara Collins opened the scoring in the first, hitting a paint jumper. She began a great quarter for Pace, who were up 9-2 with just under 3 minutes left in the quarter. Victoria Dieguez hit a three to make 12-2 with 46 left. A jumper by Rolanda Robinson pulled Adelphi back to single digits before the horn.
Scoring got harder in quarter 2. Carmen Kweti shortened Adelphi’s deficit again with 8:16 left. Both teams then combined for four missed shots. Shanice Sinclair got free throws to push the lead to 10, but it lasted little time. Adelphi scored 5 over two possessions as the clock sunk under 5 minutes. Sinclair got another jumper to end the mini-run. Tower Lorde hit her third and fourth free throws of the quarter and Kat Mansaray hit her two to keep distance. At halftime, Pace led 21-13
Competitive play did not stop with the break. Ariana Stockinger hit a three getting things started. She was the only scorer for the next two minutes. Panthers and Setters combined for nine missed shots. Finally, Robinson answered for Adelphi. The Panthers got the lead down to 4 with 2:48 minutes. Stockinger cashed in on a pair of free throws and then another three followed by a Lorde layup. The quarter was capped with another layup by Sinclair. A 10-5 scoring run put The Setters up 38-29 into the final frame.
Rolanda Robinson took charge of the Panthers offense scoring a layup and another three pointer to cut the lead to 5. Lauren Beberman hit a jumper and a free throw making it 3. Stockinger hit from far out to cool the run though briefly as Robinson got in the lane again. Sinclair, Ciara Collins and Mansaray each hit a jumper to push the lead to 10 again. Robinson scored four more but the deficit would get no smaller.
Pace benefited from 15 points off the bench. The 50% third quarter shooting made the difference as neither team shot over 36% otherwise.
Arianna Stockinger led Pace in scoring with 14 points, going 4/6 shooting the 3. Shanice Sinclair had a double double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Lorde also scored 12 and grabbed 6 rebounds. Ciara Collins was just short of a double double herself, she scored 8 and rebounded 8.
For the Quarterfinals, the destination is Worcester, Massachusetts. Assumption University hosts the Setters in their house. Game time is at 1:30. Watch live on NE10 now.tv