Dolphins hot start fuels 51-percent shooting effort to offset Skyhawks 12 three-pointers

Hayward drained six three-pointers and scored a team-high 20 points for the Skyhawks tonight (PHOTO BY Greg Wall)

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (March 11, 2024) – Second-seeded Le Moyne College shot over 57-percent from the floor over the first three quarters to offset No. 7-seeded Stonehill College's 12 three-pointers and advance with a 79-59 triumph in quarterfinal round action in the 2024 Northeast Conference Tournament at Ted Grant Court tonight.

Le Moyne torched the nets with 11-of-13 (84.6-percent) shooting from the floor in the first quarter to grab a ten-point lead and held off every challenge from Stonehill thereafter. Fifth year Lytoya Baker paced the Dolphins with a double-double of 22 points and 11 rebounds, finishing 10-for-16 shooting, with five assists. Sophomore Sierra Linnin added 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting, including 3-for-6 from three-point range, with two rebounds and two steals, while junior Haedyn Roberts rounded out Le Moyne's double-figure scorers with 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting off the bench and four boards.

Junior Sharn Hayward and postgrad Lauren Sampson led Stonehill's 12-for-27 (44.4%) three-point shooting effort to keep the Skyhawks in it deep into the second half by combining to make 10-of-16 (62.5%) themselves, totaling 34 points of the Skyhawks scoring for the contest. Hayward posted her second 20-plus point outing of the season with her 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting overall, including 6-for-9 from long distance. Her six threes give her 68 for the season and move into a tie for tenth on Stonehill's all-time single season list along with All-American and Stonehill Hall of Famer Michelle Doonan, '95 who made 68 during the 1994-95 season. Hayward also finishes the season with 1,039 minutes played, to rank seventh in Stonehill history for a single-season, while her 34.6 minutes per game are tied with Kristen McWhirter, '11 for the seventh-highest single-season average in program history.

Sampson came off the bench to contribute 14 points, connecting on 4-of-7 three-pointers, with three assists. Freshman Brooke Paquette chipped in eight points and three assists, while seniors Cameron Ward and Jada Thornton chipped in with team highs of seven rebounds and five assists, respectively, in their final collegiate games.

Le Moyne (17-13, 14-2 NEC) advances to Thursday's NEC semifinal round where it will face No. 3 FDU (14-16, 11-5 NEC) here in Syracuse at 7 p.m. The Knights advanced with a 71-59 victory over No. 6 LIU in their quarterfinal tonight. Stonehill sees its second NCAA Division I season as members of the NEC close at 4-26 overall, including 4-12 in the NEC to earn a spot in the NEC Tournament in its first season of eligibility.

Sampson added 14 points off the bench, connecting on 4-of-7 three-pointers (PHOTO BY Greg Wall)

Le Moyne made its first five shots, including four points from Baker, to offset three-straight three-pointers to start from Stonehill and grab a 12-9 lead four minutes into the game. Hayward's second triple of the night gave the Skyhawks a three-point lead (9-6) after two minutes, but the Dolphins made five of their next seven shots during a 14-0 run to open an 11-point lead (20-9) after five-straight points from Roberts.

Le Moyne carried a ten-point cushion (26-16) into the second quarter after Hayward connected on a three at the first quarter buzzer. That sparked a 9-2 Stonehill run to draw back within six (28-22) after two Thornton free-throws two minutes into the second quarter. The Skyhawks trimmed its deficit to five (34-29) after Hayward capped five-straight points of her own with a three-pointer with 3:40 left in the half. Le Moyne answered with eight-straight points to restore a 13-point cushion with 1:32 remaining in the half, capped by consecutive Linnin three-pointers.

Back-to-back Sampson three-pointers pulled Stonehill back within eight at the half (44-36). After Hayward buried a three to pull the Skyhawks within nine (48-39) less than two minutes into the third quarter, Le Moyne scored the next eight led by back to back threes from postgrad Sydney Lusher and Linnin to push the lead to 17 with 6:51 remaining in the third and Stonehill wouldn't close within 13 the rest of the way.

Noteworthy

• Hayward's second career 20-point game is her first since scoring a career-high 33 points on a school and NEC record 11 three-pointers against Wagner College in January. It marks the fifth time she has led the Skyhawks in scoring this season and her 11^th double-figure scoring output of her career.
• Sampson finished the year with back-to-back double-figure scoring games for the first time since finishing a team season-long eight game run in early February.
• Behind Hayward and Sampson's combined shooting effort from three (10-for-16), the remainder of the team was 2-for-11 (18.1%) from long range and 9-for-31 (29%) from the floor overall on the night.
• Stonehill made 9-of-30 shots (30%) inside the three-point arc in the contest.
• Stonehill has qualified for its conference tournament every year it has been eligible to do so throughout the program's history, earning its first NEC Tournament appearance after being the lone program to qualify for the first 39 Northeast-10 Conference Tournaments prior to making the transition to the Division I level.
• Le Moyne posted its first postseason win over Stonehill dating back to a 4-0 Stonehill clip in the NE10.

For the latest on Stonehill Athletics, follow the Skyhawks via social media on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Fans can also download the Stonehill Skyhawks "Front Row" mobile app, powered by PrestoSports, on iTunes and the Android Market.