#4 Quinnipiac 80, #5 Fairleigh Dickinson 76 (2 OT)Click Here For Boxscore
Staten Island, NY -- In the first-ever double overtime contest in the history of the Northeast Conference women’s basketball tournament, Ashlee Kelly (Pittsburgh, PA/Mount Lebanon) put on a record-setting performance to lead No. 4 seed Quinnipiac University to an 80-76 victory over No. 5 seed Fairleigh Dickinson in the second quarterfinal game at the Spiro Sports Center in Staten Island.
Kelly, a first-team All-Northeast Conference selection, set a Northeast Conference Tournament, overall Northeast Conference and Quinnipiac record with 28 rebounds on the afternoon. It marked Kelly’s fourth 20-rebound effort of the season and it was the most rebounds posted in an NCAA women’s game during the 2003-04 season and tied for 12th overall in NCAA women’s history. She also logged 38 points in the contest, going 13-of-22 from the floor and 12-of-16 from the charity stripe. The point total was one shy of the school record 39 set by Diane Dodge in 1989.
"Welcome to the madness of March," Quinnipiac head coach Tricia Sacca-Fabbri said. "This is a great time of the season. We refused to lose. Ashlee (Kelly) is a special player who put on a special performance.
With the win, Quinnipiac advances to the first semifinal contest on Sunday to play No. 1 seed St. Francis (Pa.). St. Francis won the first quarterfinal contest of the afternoon, 61-44, over No. 8 seed Mount St. Mary’s.
"In order to be a champion, you have to beat a champion," Sacca-Fabbri said. "Sunday, we have our chance to try and beat a champion.
The Bobcats outscored the Knights 7-3 in the second overtime to post the win. Quinnipiac’s freshman guard Krystal Pressley (New Haven, CT/Career) opened the scoring in the second set of extra play with a 3-pointer 19 seconds into the period. Fairleigh Dickinson’s junior forward Kay Odenwaelder (Goshen, CT/Holy Cross) hit a 3-pointer with 3:01 showing in the decisive overtime to knot the game at 76-76. Kelly hit 1-of-2 from the charity stripe and 2:49 and a pair at 2:11 to give the Bobcats a 79-76 lead. FDU had several chances to tie the score, but the Knights had a turnover and two missed 3-point field goals in the final two minutes.
The two squads played on an even keel in the first half and went into the intermission with the scored tied 32-32. The first half featured eight ties and eight lead changes. The largest lead of the first half for either team was five points. Quinnipiac owned a 7-2 lead just over six minutes into the contest and Fairleigh Dickinson held a 25-20 lead with 5:11 showing on the clock. With the rest of the Quinnipiac offense combining to go just 6-of-20, Kelly and second-team All-NEC choice Sara Esidore (Portland, CT/Portland) kept the Bobcats in the contest. Kelly registered 14 points, nine rebounds and two blocks in the first half and went 7-of-10 from the floor. Esidore logged eight points and five rebounds in the first stanza. Senior guard Jennifer Kozlowski (Linwood, PA/Cardinal O’Hara) and Odenwaelder combined for 20 of FDU’s 32 points in the first half. Kozlowski went 4-of-7 from the field for 11 points and Odenwaelder logged nine points and five caroms.
Quinnipiac appeared to gain control of the contest coming out of the intermission as the Bobcats went on a 14-4 run to start the second half. The run featured six points by Katie Keilty (Plainview, NY/Our Lady of Mercy) and a pair of Kelly free throws gave the Blue and Gold a 46-36 lead with 14:04 left in the second half. Kozlowski hit a 3-point field goal, a pair of free throws and a mid-range jumper as the Knights went on a 9-2 run to trim the lead to 48-45 at the 10:31 mark. After falling behind by five with 7:30 showing on the clock, Fairleigh Dickinson went on an 8-2 mini-run capped by a 3-point field goal by Odenwaelder to take their first lead of the second half, 57-56, with 5:24 left on the clock. The score was tied four times in the final five minutes. With 54 seconds remaining in regulation and the score tied at 63-63, Kozlowski hit a pair of free throws to give FDU a 65-63 lead, but Esidore hit on a jumper with 41 ticks left to knot the score at 65-65. Both squads had a chance to win the game, but a missed 3-point attempt by FDU’s Natallia Marchanka (Rechitsa, Belarus/Republic School of Olympic Reserve) with 19 seconds remaining and a missed jumper in the paint by Kelly sent the game to its first overtime session.
Quinnipiac held a 73-70 lead with 1:25 in the first overtime as Kelly scored six of the Bobcats’ eight points in the period, but FDU chipped away as junior center Kanesha Wright (Somerdale, NJ/Sterling) hit on 1-of-2 free throws at the 1:00 mark to trim the lead to two points. The Blue and Gold missed an opportunity to build on the lead as Pressley missed a jumper and Kelly missed a pair of free throws. The Knights made the Bobcats pay as Wright scored on a layup with an assist from Krissy Suckow (East Brunswick, NJ/Mount St. Mary’s Academy) with five seconds on the clock to send the game to its second overtime.
In addition to Kelly’s 38 points and 28 rebounds, the Bobcats received a double-double performance from Esidore with 14 points and 12 caroms. Odenwaelder also booked a double-double for FDU with 18 points and 17 rebounds. Kozlowski added a team-high 22 points and six assists. Wright chipped in with 18 points and nine rebounds and Marchanka, a first-team All-NEC honoree, logged 12 points.
Keyed by Kelly’s record-setting showing, Quinnipiac held a distinct 61-41 advantage in the rebounding column, but FDU’s defense forced 18 turnovers by the Bobcats while the Knights fumbled on just 10 occasions.
It marked the third time this season that Fairleigh Dickinson was vanquished by the Bobcats, having lost 71-45 in Hamden, Conn., and 83-75 in Teaneck, N.J.
Tipoff for the St. Francis (Pa.)/Quinnipiac bout is slated for 12 p.m. and the contest will be aired live on Cablevision systems throughout the Northeast.