Women’s Basketball Downs Emmanuel (Mass.) in Historic 60-56 GNAC Victory
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Rivier (6-7,2-0 Great Northeast) | 18 | 13 | 15 | 14 | 60 |
|
Emmanuel (Mass.) (5-7,0-2 Great Northeast) | 11 | 13 | 12 | 20 | 56 |
BOSTON, Mass. — The Rivier women's basketball team secured a historic win against Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) rival, Emmanuel (Mass.), on Thursday night at the Jean Yawkey Center coming away with a 60-56 victory.
The victory marks Rivier's first triumph over the Saints in program history, ending a 32-game skid dating back to the 1995 season. With the result, the Raiders improved to 6-7 (2-0 GNAC) while the Saints dropped to 5-7 (0-2 GNAC).
Senior Rachel Guinn set the tone early, scoring the first six points for Rivier to take an early 6-2 lead. Grad classmates Lyric Grumblatt and Hannah Muchemore followed suit, combining for the next ten Rivier points as the Raiders took a 16-11 lead at the 17 second mark of the first quarter. First-year Gianna Donato added a basket in the closing seconds of the quarter to take an 18-11 lead at the end of the quarter.
The Saints narrowed the gap in the second quarter, embarking on an 11-7 run to make it 25-22 with just over three minutes left in the half. However, a three-pointer from Muchemore and free throws from Donato extended Rivier's lead to 31-24 at halftime.
Grumblatt opened the third quarter with a three-pointer, but Emmanuel (Mass.) answered with an 11-0 run, taking their first lead of the game at 35-34 with 4:24 left in the period. The Raiders quickly countered with a 6-0 run, retaking a 40-35 lead. Donato and first-year Sydney Perry each added layups to close the quarter with Rivier up 46-36.
Despite a late push by Emmanuel, cutting the deficit to three with 3:30 remaining, Muchemore drained a critical three-pointer to restore Rivier's cushion. The Raiders sealed the victory with clutch free-throw shooting in the final minutes.
Grumblatt led Rivier with 19 points and eight rebounds. Muchmore and Donato each added 14 points and five rebounds, while Guinn contributed eight points and three rebounds. The Raiders narrowly outrebounded the Saints 47-40.
The Raiders look to extend their GNAC winning streak on Saturday, Jan. 11, when they host New England Col. at the Muldoon Center. Tip-off is set for 2:00 p.m.
