GORHAM, Maine – Graduate student
Liz Cote (Conway, N.H./Kennett) scored a game-high 18 points on 6-for-11 shooting from three-point range to lead the University of Southern Maine Huskies to a dominant 69-36 win over the Thomas College Terriers in a non-conference women's basketball game Saturday afternoon at Hill Gymnasium.
Cote was one of two players in double-figures scoring for the Huskies, adding four assists and two steals. Senior
Maddy York (Nobleboro, Maine/Lincoln Academy) added 10 points off of the bench. Ten different players figured in the scoring for Southern Maine. Freshmen
Lucy Wiles (Glenburn, Maine/Hampden Academy),
Morgan Cunningham (Augusta, Maine/Cony) and
Dakota Shipley (Bath, Maine/Brunswick) each had eight points.
The Records:
Thomas College (0-7)
Southern Maine (4-1)
Today's game marked the 21
st meeting between the University of Southern Maine Huskies and the Thomas College Terriers and the first meeting since November 15, 2019 – a 66-54 win for Southern Maine. The Huskies lead the overall series 21-0.
How It Happened:
- Southern Maine led wire-to-wire scoring the first five points of the game on a three from Cote and a jumper from Wiles. The Terriers got back in the game and trailed by one, 8-7, with 5:48 remaining in the opening quarter after a three from Elena Alderman, but the Huskies responded with a 12-4 run to close out the frame with a 20-11 lead headed into the second. York scored six of her 10 in the decisive final five minutes.
- Cote stayed hot to start the second, canning a three on the Huskies' opening possession, as Southern Maine rattled off an 11-0 run in the first 4:16 of the quarter . The Huskies went on to outscore the Terriers 20-8 in the second quarter to take a commanding 40-19 lead at the break. Cote and Wiles combined for 10 of the Huskies' 20 points in the frame.
- USM remained on the front foot and opened the second half with a 13-2 run in the first 3:03 of the third. Four different players scored in the run for the Huskies who went 5-for-5 from the field (2-for-2 from three) to keep putting distance from the Terriers. The Huskies scored the final five points of the quarter on a three and a layup from Shipley to lead 58-24 headed into the fourth.
- Thomas scored four straight on back-to-back buckets from Mollie Gray to start the fourth and trim the Terrier deficit to 58-28 with 7:55 to go. However, the Huskies used a 9-3 spurt over the next 2:54, and snagged its largest lead of the game 65-31 with 4:13 on the clock after a Cunningham layup. From there, USM was content to ride out the game for the 69-39 victory.
Inside The Stats:
- Southern Maine shot 41.7 percent (15-for-36) from three-point range in the contest. Cote's six threes led the way followed by three from York and two each Cunningham and Shipley.
- Southern Maine scored 21 of its 69 points off of Thomas' 24 turnovers. York had four steals.
Up Next:
The Huskies host Bates College on Tuesday, November 26 (5:30 pm) before hitting the road for its next five contests in December. The Huskies start their month-long road swing at Saint Joseph's College (Maine) on Sunday, December 1 (5:00 pm), and then begin their Little East schedule with a road game at Eastern Connecticut on Wednesday, December 4 (5:00 pm).
-cac-