NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – Twenty-eight points and 23 rebounds by senior forward Kayleen Whall (Foxboro, Mass.) fueled a 70-59 victory for the Endicott women's basketball team over Rivier on day two of the Smith Tyler Tip-Off Classic as the Gulls erased an early first half deficit of 13 points to garner their first win of the 2014-15 season.
Whall, who was named to the All-Tournament Team after totaling 38 points and 29 rebounds over two games, registered the first 20-point, 20-rebound game in Gulls women's basketball program history and the first 20-rebound performance seen by an Endicott basketball player since former men's great Nemanja Marinkovic in 2003. She sunk 11-of-20 field goal attempts including 3-of-4 shots from three-point range while hitting all three free throws. Nine of her 23 rebounds were on the offensive glass as Endicott created 17 points off of second-chance opportunities.
As a team, Endicott dominated the boards, outrebounding Rivier 52-19 in the game, and held a crucial advantage in their three-point shooting. Endicott made 6-of-17 (.353) three-point bids compared to 5-of-23 (.217) makes from long range by the Raiders.
Assisting Whall offensively was junior guard Kelsey Cuddy (Madison, Conn.) who struggled yesterday versus Middlebury and responded on Sunday with 17 points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals, and two blocks. Cuddy did most of her damage from the free throw line, hitting nine of 11 attempts as Endicott fared well at the charity stripe with a 82% success rate. Junior guard Nicole Catizone (Woburn, Mass.) added to Endicott's success beyond the arc as she made 3-of-5 three-point attempts en route to 11 points to go along with four boards, an assist, and a block.
Just as she did against Middlebury, freshman forward Hannah Shaw (Bar Harbor, Maine) was a factor off the bench and integral in Endicott's ability to take a second half lead and maintain it. Shaw scored eight of her 10 points in that second period and ended the game with her first collegiate double-double as she added 10 caroms. Four of Shaw's rebounds were offensive as the Gulls pounded the boards with a 16-3 offensive rebounding advantage.
Rivier's All-Tournament selection senior guard Deanna Purcell (Hudson, N.H.) scored 16 of her team-high 21 points in the first half as the Raiders the early part of this game to put Endicott in an early hole. Purcell had a double-double in the first half alone, adding 13 rebounds to her point total, as Rivier led 23-10 at the 10:48 mark of the opening period. The Gulls would chip away at their GNAC opponent's lead and eventually tie the game on at 30-30 on Cuddy free throws with 2:06 remaining in the first half. Rivier would go into the break with a 34-32 advantage.
Endicott and Rivier exchanged baskets to start the second half and with the game tied 44-44 4:59 into the second half, Whall drilled a three-point shot to put the Blue and Green ahead for good. The basket started a 12-0 run over 4:50 game minutes that pushed momentum heavily into Endicott's favor.
Rivier would creep back into the game, lowering the Gulls' lead to single digits on two separate occasions but Endicott leaned on key baskets by Shaw and Cuddy free throws to finish off the game.
Endicott (1-1) looks ahead to their next non-conference opponent the 22nd-ranked Bowdoin Polar Bears for their home opener on Wednesday, November 19th. Tip-off is at 7:00 pm in MacDonald Gymnasium.
