Box Score UMD IS CORRECTING STATISTICS FILE. WILL BE UPDATED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE
NORTH DARTMOUTH, Mass. – Senior Megan Pelletier (Winslow, Maine/Messalonskee) recorded an 18-point, 13-rebound double-double but the University of Southern Maine Huskies fell short 60-48 in their Little East Conference women's basketball regular season finale to the UMass Dartmouth Corsairs Saturday afternoon.
Southern Maine will be the fourth seed in the upcoming Little East Conference tournament and will host a home game on Tuesday, February 23 (5:30 p.m.). The Huskies will host UMass Dartmouth as the fifth seed. With today's loss, USM split the regular season series with the Corsairs with each team winning on its home court. USM is now 14-11 overall and 8-6 in the Little East. UMass Dartmouth is 7-7 in conference action and 17-8 overall. USM defeated UMass Dartmouth 68-55 on January 16.
Pelletier was 7-for-16 from the field and 4-for-4 from the free throw line to lead USM. Senior Ella Ramonas (Portland, Maine/Deering) added 11 points, while sophomore Kayla Stacy (Auburn, N.H./Pinkerton Academy) and senior Gretchen Anderson (Kittery Point, Maine/St. Thomas Aquinas) each scored six points.
UMD junior Megan Ronaghan led all scorers with 28 points and grabbed 17 rebounds, including nine offensive boards. Ronaghan finished the game 12-for-22 from the field. Beth Castantini added 11 points and six rebounds for the Corsairs.
Down by eight 26-18 at the half, Southern Maine rallied in the third quarter outscoring UMD 18-8 to snag a slim 36-34 lead. Pelletier scored eight of her team-high 18 points in the rally. USM's lead was short-lived however as the Corsairs pushed back with an 11-0 run to jump ahead of the Huskies 45-36. Ronaghan scored six of the Corsairs points in the run.
The Huskies kept the game within two possessions for the majority of the fourth quarter and trailed 49-44 with 2:28 minutes remaining after a layup from Pelletier, but UMD was able to close out the game, extending its lead to 53-44 on back-to-back buckets from Rachel McCarron and Ronaghan with just under 90 seconds to go. Forced to foul, UMD closed the game out on the line for the 60-48 final.
Southern Maine will host a home quarterfinal game on Tuesday, February 23 at 5:30 p.m.
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