Navy knocks off Loyola, 63-55
Mids head to Patriot semis; Morgan edges Coppin, 58-51, in MEAC
Taylor Dunham overcame a poor shooting night to take charge in the fourth quarter as third-seeded Navy survived an upset bid by No. 6 seed Loyola Maryland in the quarterfinals of the Patriot League women’s basketball tournament Monday night.
Dunham scored 11 of her 13 points in the final quarter as host Navy rallied to beat Loyola, 63-55, before a sparse audience at Alumni Hall. Sophomore forward Kaila Clark totaled 10 points and seven rebounds for the Midshipmen, whowill play in the semifinals for the ninth time in coach Stefanie Pemper’s 10-year tenure.
“This was a hard-fought win for sure. I thought the players made great plays when the game was on the line,” Pemper said. “It was a physical game and we fought hard. We’re excited to be advancing.”
Sophomore forward Laurel Jaunich contributed 10 points and five rebounds for Navy (24-6), which moves on to meet second-seeded Bucknell (22-8) on Thursday at 6 p.m. at Sojka Pavilion in Lewisburg, Pa.
Bucknell took out Holy Cross, 67-53, on Tuesday night and will seek to sweep Navy. The Bison beat the Mids, 49-37, in Lewisburg on Jan. 24 and 49-40 in Annapolis on Feb. 21.
“They’ve had our number. So we’re going to have to do something to change that,” Pemper said of the Bucknell matchup. “I like that we’re coming off a couple good wins and have some confidence.”
Senior guard Hannah Fenske was the fourth player in double figures for the Mids, making two free throws with six seconds left to finish with 11 points while also posting three assists and three steals.
Freshman forward Izzy Therien scored 18 points and added seven rebounds to lead Loyola (9-21), which could not hold a five-point lead in the fourth quarter. Freshman forward Delaney Connolly scored 15 points for the Greyhounds, who have not won a tournament title since 1994 when they played in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.
Sophomore guard Stephanie Karcz finished with 17 rebounds (11 offensive) and junior forward Ashley Hunter totaled 11 points and nine rebounds for Loyola.
Clark made two free throws to give Navy a 39-33 lead with 2:57 remaining in the third quarter. However, the Mids once again could not gain separation, failing to score on their final four possessions. The Greyhounds got within 39-37 heading into the final quarter.
Connolly made a 3-pointer 13 sec- onds into the fourth quarter to spark a 10-2 run that gave Loyola its largest lead, 47-42 with 7:34 to go.
Navy responded with Jaunich making a couple layups to jump-start a14-0 run that gave the home team the lead for good. Dunham made a pair of 3-pointers during the decisive run, which put the Mids ahead 56-47 with 2:56 remaining.
MORGAN STATE 58, COPPIN STATE 51: Tykyrah Williams scored 19 points, including a crucial layup with just over one minute remaining, and the No. 6 seed Bears held off the 11th-seeded Eagles in the first round of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament in Norfolk, Va.
Morgan went ahead 50-49 with 1:32 to go on a pair of free throws by Adre’onia Coleman. After a Coppin turnover, Williams drove for a layup to put the Bears up 52-49 with 1:04 left. Williams added four free throws in the final minute to help the Bears hang on. Morgan (16-14) will face No. 3 seed Hampton in the quarterfinals Thursday at noon.
Genesis Lucas led the Eagles (6-23) with 16 points, eight rebounds and four assists while Chance Graham finished with her league-high 12th double double with 15 points and12 rebounds.
Lexus Spears added 14 points and 12 rebounds, and Williams had a gamehigh 13 rebounds for Morgan.