WBB Rolls Past #7 Elms

NEW LONDON, Conn. – Second-seeded Mitchell College advanced past seventh-seeded Elms College by a 66-49 final on Tuesday night in the quarterfinals of the 2019 New England Collegiate Conference Women's Basketball Championship at the Yarnall Athletic Center.

The Mariners beat the Blazers for the third time this season and improved to 17-9 overall, breaking the school record for single season wins in the Division III era. Mitchell advances to the NECC semifinals and will host third-seeded Becker College on Thursday, February 21 at 7 p.m.

Le'Sandra Turner led all scorers with 17 points on 8-for-12 shooting, one of four Mitchell players who finished in double figures. Amina Wiley added a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds while battling foul trouble, and Kelsey Hernandez and Jessica Lohneiss added 10 points apiece.

Elms closed out the season with a record of 12-14. Samantha Lynes paced the Blazers with 14 points while Angelica Peguero-Flores finished with 10 points and nine rebounds.

The Blazers held a 10-7 lead midway through the first quarter before the Mariners seized control behind 12 unanswered points. Turner provided a pair of buckets during the stretch while Lohneiss drilled a three, and Mitchell never trailed again.

Leading 22-12 after the opening period, the Mariners went up by as many as 14 points in the second quarter before settling into a 41-29 lead at intermission. Both Turner and Wiley scored eight points in the half despite sitting out long spells due to foul trouble.

Mitchell's lead didn't dip below double digits the entire second half and peaked at 19. Turner netted nine points after the break to lead all scorers. The Mariners shot 39 percent as a team and held Elms to just 30 percent.