Athletics - Franklin Pierce University

Senior Heather Jacobs led Franklin Pierce with 19 points and nine rebounds (four offensive) against Stonehill.

#15 Stonehill Holds Off
Franklin Pierce, 75-69
Crehan three-pointer halts Ravens
late comeback effort

RINDGE, N.H. (February 11, 2006) – Stonehill College, ranked 15^th in this week’s USA Today/ESPN Division II poll and the top-ranked team in the region, held off a late rally to post a 75-69 victory over Franklin Pierce, ranked eighth in the region, in Northeast-10 Conference women’s basketball action at the Fieldhouse this afternoon.

Senior Katelyn Crehan’s (Jackson, N.J./Saint Rose) lone basket in five minutes of work on the afternoon halted Franklin Pierce’s comeback effort with 3:34 left in regulation. The Skyhawks kept the Ravens off the board over the last 3:46 to help seal the win. Franklin Pierce missed its last seven shots of the contest after freshman Jennifer Leedham (Ellesmere Port, England) hit a jumper with 3:46 to go that gave the hosts a 69-68 lead, capping a 13-5 run.

Junior Danielle D'Ettorre notched her first double-double of the season (fifth career) with 13 points and a game-high ten rebounds to go with three blocks and two steals.

Junior Alisha Collins (Port Chester, N.Y./Trinity Catholic) led Stonehill with a game-high 22 points, to go with six rebounds and five assists. Sophomore Erika Stupinski (Topsham, Maine/Mount Ararat) added 13 points as she hit 4-of-6 from the field, including 3-3 from three-point range, and added three rebounds, six assists and four steals. Junior Kim Morast (Bridgewater, Mass./Bridgewater-Raynham) totaled 12 points, two assists and two steals, while freshman Kelsey Simonds (Bridgewater, Mass./Cardinal Spellman) chipped in ten points, six rebounds (three offensive), four blocks and two steals off the bench.

Junior Danielle D’Ettorre (Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario/St. Mary’s) sparked Franklin Pierce with her first double-double of the season (fifth career) as she totaled 13 points, hitting 5-of-9 from the field, a game-best ten rebounds, three blocks and two steals. Senior Heather Jacobs (Stoughton, Mass./Stoughton) led the Ravens with 19 points to go with nine rebounds (four offensive), while freshman Heather Benton (Valley Springs, Calif./St. Mary’s) chipped in seven points, seven boards, a season-high six assists and two steals.

Leedham and sophomore Josie Lidke (Chaska, Minn./Chaska) each contributed nine points off the bench, while Leedham also dished five assists.

Stonehill led by six at halftime and ran its advantage to 11 (52-41) after a Collins three-pointer with 13:27 to play. Lidke hit one of two at the line to cap a 6-0 Franklin Pierce run that cut its deficit to five points (52-47) with 11:13 to go.

Freshman Heather Benton was a thorn in Stonehill's side all day with seven points, seven boards, a season-high six assists and two steals.

The Skyhawks lead was still seven (63-56) after a Caitlin Kennedy (Baldwin, N.Y./St. Francis Prep) lay-up with 7:23 left when the Ravens made their final run. Jacobs sparked the rally with a three, then Benton notched back-to-back lay-ups off her own steals to trim the lead to a point (68-67) with 4:11 left before Leedham’s go-ahead jumper with 3:46 to go.

Crehan hit her three, then both teams missed on back-to-back possessions before Collins scored to put the Skyhawks up four (73-69) with 1:14 to play. Stephanie Bergeron (Pointe Claire, Quebec/Dawson College) and Jacobs both missed three’s in the final minute to seal the Ravens fate.

Franklin Pierce shot well, hitting 45.6-percent (26-57) of its shots from the floor, including 7-of-16 (43.8%) from three-point range, but Stonehill was slightly better, shooting 47.4% (27-57) from the field. The Ravens out-rebounded the Skyhawks 37-27, but the visitors turned 17 turnovers into 23 points (13 for 17 in the first half alone).

Franklin Pierce dominated early on, taking a quick 7-2 lead after a D’Ettorre three 2:31 into the contest, before staking out an 11-point lead (19-8) after a Jacobs three with 12:48 to play in the opening stanza. Stonehill reeled off a 14-2 run over a span of three minutes to regain the lead (24-23) after a Stupinski three-pointer with 8:57 left in the frame. The Skyhawks extended their lead to as much as eight points (42-34) after Morast converted a conventional three-point play 1:05 before the intermission.

Franklin Pierce (13-11, 10-9 NE-10) looks to put an end to its first three-game losing streak since mid-January when it travels to Merrimack College on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. Stonehill (21-3, 16-3 NE-10) hosts Southern New Hampshire University on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.

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