MILWAUKEE – Today at the Bloechl Center, the Mount Mary University basketball team hosted the first round of the 2020 American Collegiate Athletic Association Women's Basketball Tournament. The Blue Angels lost their contest against University of California Santa Cruz by a final score of 74-55 in game one, then Finlandia University (13-11) defeated Pine Manor in game two.
Erica Williams (Jr./Bloomington, Ill.) led the Blue Angels in their final game of the postseason. Williams went 5-of-17 from the field for an MMU leading 14 points. Williams also pulled in a team high 11 rebounds for the junior's first ever postseason double-double.
Off the bench, Nyasia Hardy (Fr./Fort Wayne, Ind.) helped the Blue Angels with an efficient 5-of-7 from the field. Hardy scored 13 points as she used her speed and agility to beat defenders to the basket. Two times, Hardy took a defensive rebound on one end of the court and scored a runner in the paint on the offensive end. In their last effort of the 2019-20 campaign, Hardy pulled in seven rebounds and led her team with two assists and two steals.
After Erica Williams scored the first basket of the 2020 ACAA Women's Basketball Tournament, the Banana Slugs started a 25-1 run that would push them ahead early. The ACAA's leading rebounder Kaylee Murphy from UC Santa Cruz grabbed seven rebounds in the opening quarter. With that effort on the glass, Murphy led her team on offense shooting a perfect 3-of-3 from the field and 3-of-3 from the free throw line for nine points.
The Banana Slugs began the second quarter with a 26-3 lead. MMU reached to their bench which scored five of the 11 points scored by the Blue Angels in the frame. Lucy Pavelko (Sr./Muskego, Wis.) scored the lone three-pointer of the second to spark the Blue Angels starters. After forcing UCSC to four team turnovers, MMU was able to limit the Banana Slugs to 18 points in the second.
As was the case most of the regular season, the Blue Angels had their best offensive quarter of the day in the third. The Blue Angels hit 8-of-20 from the field and 6-of-8 from the free throw line to outscore their opponent 22-17 in the frame.
After trailing by as much as 30 in the first half, the Blue Angels continued to cut down their opponent's lead. In the final quarter of the contest, the Blue Angels continued to outscore the Banana Slugs. In addition, the Blue Angels forced four more UCSC turnovers while they also hit 7-of-10 from the free throw line on their way to a 19-14 final frame. At the final horn, the Banana Slugs took the overall victory 74-55.
In the second game, the Pine Manor College Gators took the early 7-0 lead against the #2 seed Finlandia University Lions. The Lions then went on a 17-3 run to take the lead which they would never surrender thereafter. Finlandia went on to take a 78-62 victory over the Gators to earn their first ever appearance in the ACAA Women's Basketball Championship Game.
While MMU Basketball finished their season tonight, the Bloechl Center will still play host to the championship game tomorrow at noon. The UC Santa Cruz Banana Slugs will take on the Finlandia University Lions at noon on MMU's home court. Go to MtMaryAthletics.com/Live to watch the championship game live.
