Senior Kelsey Simonds posted her 30th career double-double with 15 points and a season-high matching 12 rebounds in tonight's NE-10 quarterfinal victory.

2010 NE-10 TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINALS
Stonehill Shoots by Assumption, 73-53

Third-seeded Skyhawks advance to semifinal round behind Simonds double-double, 51-percent shooting; Second-seeded Pace up next

Boxscore 

EASTON, Mass. (March 2, 2010) - Third-seeded Stonehill College, among teams receiving votes in this week's USA Today/ESPN/Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Division II poll and ranked fifth in the NCAA Division II East Regional rankings, shot 50.9-percent from the field in posting a 73-53 victory over sixth-seeded Assumption College in quarterfinal round action of the 2010 Northeast-10 Conference women's basketball championship at Merkert Gymnasium tonight.

Stonehill (22-8, 16-6 NE-10) advances to Friday's semifinal round and will travel to Westchester County, N.Y., where it will face second-seeded Pace University (22-6, 18-4 NE-10) at 7 p.m. The Setters advanced with a 62-46 victory over tenth-seeded American International College in another quarterfinal tonight. The NE-10 championship game is slated for Sunday at the home site of the highest remaining seed at 1 p.m. Assumption closes out its season with a 16-13 record overall after playing to a 12-10 clip in NE-10 play.

Senior Kelsey Simonds (Middleboro, Mass./Cardinal Spellman), named a first team All-Northeast-10 first team selection for the third time last week, led Stonehill with her seventh double-double of the season (30^th career) as she posted 15 points (13 first half) and a game-high 12 rebounds to go with three blocked shots, three steals and two assists. She made 5-of-8 shots from the field, including her lone three-point attempt, while converting all four free-throw attempts. Junior Kristen McWhirter (Melvin Village, N.H./New Hampton Prep) added 13 points, shooting 5-for-9 from the field, including 2-for-3 from three-point range, and draining her lone free-throw attempt to go with four rebounds and four assists.

Senior Stephanie Pintal (Nashua, N.H./Nashua South) contributed nine points, six rebounds (three offensive) and two steals off the bench, while junior Emily Rousseau (Biddeford, Maine/Biddeford) chipped in eight points, canning both three-point attempts, and seven assists.

Junior Kristen McWhirter added 13 points, four assists and four rebounds.

Senior Kayla Parker (Sanford, Maine/Sanford) and junior Molly Griffiths (Walpole, Mass./Ursuline Academy) combined for 30 of Assumption's 53 points with 15 points apiece. Parker made 6-of-12 shots from the field to go with a team-high eight rebounds and two blocked shots, while Griffiths posted four rebounds, two assists and two steals. Sophomore Kelly Meredith (Franklin, Mass./Franklin) chipped in with seven points and four boards.

Stonehill shot 50-percent or better in each half, finishing at 50.9-percent (28-for-55) from the field, including 51.9% (14-27) in the second half. The Skyhawks buried 6-of-10 three-pointers, including 3-for-4 in the second half, and converted 11-of-15 (73.3%) free-throws. Assumption was held to 34.5-percent (20-for-58) shooting from the floor and only 3-for-18 (16.7%) from three-point range. The Skyhawks out-rebounded the Greyhounds 35-33 and enjoyed a 15-7 advantage in points off turnovers.

The game was tight for the first ten minutes with the game still tied (11-11) four and a half minutes in. Stonehill started to gain some breathing room from there, using a 12-2 run over the next six minutes to open a ten point lead (23-13) after two free-throws from Simonds midway through the half. McWhirter sparked the run with a three-point play and sophomore Tania Williams (South Setauket, N.Y./Ward-Melville) chipped in five points, including a three-pointer from the top of the key.

After Meredith made one of two free-throws, Stonehill kept the run going and extended its lead to 15 points (31-16) following a Gray layup with 7:21 remaining. Assumption drew within seven following a quick 8-0 run, capped by a Parker layup with 3:23 left.

Stonehill regained a ten-point (39-29) lead by halftime and then quickly ran its advantage to 18 points (48-29) with the first nine points of the second half. The Skyhawks opened a 29-point cushion (63-34) after a Pintal jumper with 12:04 remaining to cap a 14-0 run that was sparked by back-to-back three's by McWhirter and Rousseau with Pintal tallying six points in that time. The closest Assumption got the rest of the way was its final 20-point margin of defeat.