Monks March Past Women's Basketball, 81-58, on Senior Day

PAXTON, Mass. – The Anna Maria College women's basketball team concluded the 2015-16 season with an 81-58 loss to the Monks of Saint Joseph's College on Saturday afternoon in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) action.

The win boosts the Monks to 20-5 overall and 10-1 in league play, while Anna Maria wraps up the season at 8-17 overall and 2-9 in GNAC action.

AMCAT LEADERS

Anna Maria saw 22 points from junior Deja Taitt (Cambia Heights, N.Y.). She shot 10-for-20 from the floor and hit two of three from the free-throw line to pace the AMCATS. Classmates Christina Gauvin (Dudley, Mass.) and Nicole Mareiro (Acushnet, Mass.) both scored 12 points apiece.

Senior Samantha Parker (Athol, Mass.) led the team in rebounds with eight. Follow senior Lindsay Bond (Webster, Mass.) finished with four points and four rebounds in her last game at Anna Maria. The AMCATS recognized Parker and Bond in a senior day ceremony prior to tip-off.

SAINT JOSEPH'S LEADERS

The Monks were paced by Kelsi McNamara (West Newbury, Mass.) with a game-high 27 points. She scored 20 points in the first half and finished the day shooting 9-for-12 from the floor with four three-pointers. Emily Benway (Rochester, N.H.) added 17 points to the Monks offense, which saw 10 different players score.

Benway also had a team-best eight rebounds, while McNamara led the team in assists with four.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The AMCATS scored the first basket of the game on a layup by Parker and maintained the lead for the first 2:40 of the contest until a three-pointer by McNamara gave the Monks a 7-6 advantage at the 6:16 mark. Saint Joseph's would build a five-point lead a few minutes later on another three by McNamara at the 3:05 mark, but Anna Maria would cut the deficit to just one point, 18-17, following a layup by Taitt as the first quarter ended.

Anna Maria managed to stay within striking distance for the first half of the second quarter until the Monks embarked on an 11-0 run midway through the frame, holding the AMCATS scoreless for over three minutes. A pair of free-throws by Kristina Russo (South Windsor, Conn.) would end the drought for Anna Maria, but the Monks held a 14-point advantage by then. A jumper by Mareiro rounded out the half with the Monks up by 12, 40-28.

Saint Joseph's scored the first three baskets of the second half in a 1:40 and forced Anna Maria to take a timeout. Taitt would score a layup off of the timeout and Anna Maria would nearly match the Monks point-for-point in the third quarter, 18-15, to trail by 15 points entering the fourth quarter.

Anna Maria cut the deficit to 12 points in the early minutes of the final frame, but the Monks took advantage of their deep bench, using fresh legs to build a 20-point lead midway through the quarter. A layup by Hayley Quirion (Augusta, Maine) would put the Monks ahead by 24 points with 33 seconds remaining. A final free-throw by Mareiro set the final score at 81-58.

FINAL COMPARISONS

Both teams had comparable shooting days, as the Monks checked in at 39.7 percent (25-63), while Anna Maria finished at 38.6 percent (22-57). Saint Joseph's hit 40 percent of their three-point attempts (6-15) to Anna Maria's 19 percent (4-21).

Anna Maria sent Saint Joseph's to the free-throw line for 29 attempts, where they made 25 of them, while the AMCATS finished 10-for-15 from the charity stripe.

GNAC PLAYOFFS

With today's victory the Monks sealed the top seed for the 2016 GNAC Tournament. They will host No. 8 Rivier on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m.