CCC SEMIFINALS: No. 2 Roger Williams Tops No. 3 Endicott, 58-50

BRISTOL, R.I. – The third-seeded Endicott women's basketball team fell to No. 2 seed Roger Williams, 58-50, in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Tournament semifinals on Thursday night at the Recreation Center Gymnasium.

Emily Pratt (Gardner, Mass.) paced Endicott in the loss with a game-high 21 points on 7-of-21 shooting (7-for-9 3PT, 3-fo-4 FT) to go along with five rebounds and one assist. Hannah Kiernan (Wenham, Mass.) contributed 17 points and six rebounds, while Gabriella Coppola (Watertown, Mass.) had two points, six rebounds, a game-high seven assists, a block and a steal.

Leading 32-25 at the half, Roger Williams established its largest advantage of the entire game with a 7-3 run to begin the third quarter (11 points, 39-28, 4:26) and held on the rest of the way to advance to the CCC Championship game this Saturday.

Endicott pulled within three points twice late in the contest (39-36, 3rd quarter, 1:49 | 42-39, 4th quarter, 6:59), but Roger Williams answered both times to fend off each comeback bid by the Gulls.

FIRST HALF

• Roger Williams used two separate runs in the first half to build up a 32-25 advantage at the break.
• Tied 14-14 with 1:37 remaining in the first quarter, the Hawks put together an 8-0 run that carried over into the second for a 22-14 lead (7:46 remaining | largest deficit for Endicott, at the time).
• Endicott followed with an 11-4 spurt of their own to make it a 26-25 matchup with 2:08 remaining in the first half. Pratt spearheaded the run with five points, while Kiernan added four and Putnam chipped in with two.
• Roger Williams answered Endicott, however, as the Hawks notched a 6-0 run over the final 1:50 of play for their 7-point lead at the half.
• The first stanza featured one tie (14-14 at 1:37 of the first) and six lead changes. The last lead change in the half came with 50-seconds to play in the 1st quarter (Roger Williams, 15-14).

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Despite the loss, Endicott holds an 18-17 advantage in the all-time series.
• The Gulls and Hawks split the 2017-18 regular season series, as each team won on the road (RWU, 66-55, 1/13/18 | EC, 62-60, 2/17/18).
• Endicott's 17 wins this season are tied for third-most in the Brittany Hutchinson era.
• The Gulls held a 13-1 differential in points off turnovers.

FOR THE FOES

• Mariah Nicholas (Acushnet, Mass.) posted a double-double with 18 points and 14 rebounds alongside three assists and two blocks.
• Teagan Dunn (Burlington, Conn.) also notched a double-double via 12 points and 14 rebounds in addition to four assists and a game-high four blocks.
• Gabby Jerahian (Quincy, Mass.) aided the offense with 15 points, five rebounds, two assists, a block, and three steals.
• The Hawks out-rebounded Endicott, 52-33.

WHAT'S NEXT

No. 2 Roger Williams (23-4) will play No. 1 University of New England in the CCC Championship game this Saturday in Biddeford, Maine at a time to be determined later. Endicott sees its 2017-18 season come to a close at 17-10 overall. 

For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

(Photo Credit - David Le '10)