Pace Paw Print

Media Credit: Alex Pandolfi

March 2, Pleasantville- Pace's journey to win the Northeast-10 conference (NE-10) tournament came to an end as the eighth seeded Setters fell to the ninth seeded Southern Connecticut State 64-46 in the first round.

Senior Stephanie Klingele and freshman Lisa Welsome helped the Setters out by scoring a team high of eleven points each.

The Owls were led by sophomore Jacqueline Johannes who had a double-double performance by scoring ten points and taking down eleven rebounds. Senior Michelle Martinik also helped out the Owls with a game high of 15 points.

Even though the Owls pulled out with a big win, both teams displayed poor shooting. Pace only made 26 percent of their shots for the game, while Southern Connecticut made 31 percent.

The difference came in free throws and three pointers. The Setters made 12 free throws and only sank in two three pointers. The Owls on the other hand drained 19 free throws along with seven three pointers.

The NE-10 tournament game started off as a close one. Senior Kate Lynch gave Southern Connecticut a good start by sinking in the game's first points with two free throws.

Freshman Kristen Connolly responded right away by bringing the ball back down the court for a lay up.

From this point the Owls were looking to take control of the game. They went onto a 13-5 point run that broke open an eight point lead.

The Setters were looking for a comeback after two free throws from Connolly that made the score 15-9, but it would not take much time for Southern Connecticut to extend its lead once again. The Owls went on a 5-0 run for the next four minutes, keeping the Setters scoreless.

Now trailing by eleven points, Pace needed something to shift momentum. Unfortunately, many shots the Setters put up could not quite make it in the rim by rolling or bouncing out. The missed shots would only end up hurting the Setters as they would only score ten more points before halftime.

With the halftime score of 34-19 in favor of the Owls, Pace's season was already looking like it would have a grim ending.

In the beginning of the game's final half, a three pointer scored by Connolly in the opening minute appeared to bring life back to the Setters. It was short lived though, as Southern Connecticut responded right back with two made free throws.

Welsome, with a little under 17 minutes remaining in the game, would fight her way through the paint for a lay up, making the score 38-24.

These would be the last points the Setters would get for five minutes. In that time, Southern Connecticut State would tag on seven more points to their lead, making the score 45-24.

Pace freshman Brittany Huggins would end the scoring drought, elevating for a lay up.

The lay up by Huggins only put a tiny dent into the large deficit Pace had to overcome. A lay up by Johannes and a three pointer by Martinik extended the Owls lead to their largest lead of the game at 24 points.

All Pace could do from here on in was chop away at their deficit and hope for a miracle. A few steals toward the end, one by Welsome and one by senior Maria Cirello would excite the team and the crowd a little bit, but unfortunately the Setters failed to capitalize. Eventually the clock would expire, ending the Setters' conference title hopes for the 2007-08 season.

With the loss the Setters end their season with an 11-17 record overall. Southern Connecticut advances in the NE-10 tournament to face the number one seeded Stonehill College.

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