Skip To Main Content

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Athletics

WBB End of Game
Calan Gizelbach
75
Winner Nova Southeastern Nova 26-4,16-4 Sunshine State
71
Embry-Riddle (FL) ERAU 22-6,16-4 Sunshine State
Winner
Nova Southeastern Nova
26-4,16-4 Sunshine State
75
Final
71
Embry-Riddle (FL) ERAU
22-6,16-4 Sunshine State
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Nova Southeastern Nova 11 23 17 24 75
Embry-Riddle (FL) ERAU 15 17 21 18 71

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Zach Phillips

Eagles Drop Semifinal Clash 75-71 Against Nova Southeastern

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Embry-Riddle women's basketball came up just one possession short in a 75-71 loss on Thursday evening in their SSC semifinal matchup against Nova Southeastern. The two teams finished the regular season with an identical 16-4 record in conference play, and there wasn't much to separate them again tonight. Neither team ever held a lead of more than six points. ERAU had five of their eight players score at least 10 points tonight, with Eliana Sheplee leading the way as she finished with her ninth double-double of the season. The Eagles went 23-for-30 at the free-throw line tonight, enough to rank among the single-game top 10 in program history for free throws made and attempted.

RECORDS:
Embry-Riddle: 22-6, (16-4, SSC)
Nova Southeastern: 27-4, (16-4, SSC)
 
GAME NOTES
  • The Sharks now lead the all-time series 16-9 over the Eagles.
  • ERAU and NSU split their regular season series, with the home team winning on each occasion.
  • This is the second consecutive season that Nova and Embry-Riddle have met in the SSC Tournament, with the Blue and Gold beating the Sharks in the championship game last year.

KEY PERFORMERS
Embry-Riddle Nova Southeastern
  • Player 1: Bridie McCann - 18 pts, 2 reb
  • Player 2: Kaliyah Morales - 16 pts, 3 reb, 4 ast
  • Player 3: Markayla Holland - 9 pts, 11 reb, 2 blk, 3 stl

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
  • Embry-Riddle got off to a quick start as Jareah Branch converted a layup in the opening 10 seconds of the game after controlling the opening tip. A tip-in from Hailey Chiles tied the game at 2-2 within the first 30 seconds.
  • A fastbreak layup from NSU gave them their first lead at 4-2 with 8:45 left in the quarter, but Mary Lengemann converted a pair of free throws to draw even at 4-4 just nine seconds later.
  • After Lengemann's free throws, the defenses would not give up another made field goal for over five minutes. Eliana Sheplee broke the drought to put ERAU ahead 8-4 with 3:33 remaining in the period along with free throws from Kailey Turpening.
  • Anye' Staton provided a spark with five points off the bench in the final three minutes before Bridie McCann ended the quarter with seven straight points in less than a minute for NSU.
  • At the end of the quarter, the Eagles led 15-11, in large part because of their defense holding the Sharks to a 2-for-20 start from the field.
Second Quarter
  • Laurie Satchell gave the Blue and Gold their biggest lead of the game when she put them ahead 17-11 on the opening possession of the quarter.
  • Nova Southeastern responded with a 10-2 run over the next three minutes, including eight points in the paint. The two squads combined for 86 points in the paint tonight, including 28 in the second quarter.
  • Consecutive layups from Lengemann tied the game at 23 heading into the final five minutes of the half.
  • After three free throws from Sheplee and a layup from Satchell, ERAU led 28-27, but a 7-0 run by the Sharks gave them a 34-28 lead with just one minute left.
  • A layup from Branch and a late steal were enough to send the Eagles into the half trailing just 34-32.
Third Quarter
  • Another quick start from Embry-Riddle saw them even the game at 34 after a layup from Branch in the opening seconds.
  • With Markayla Holland and Kaliyah Morales each connecting on their next jumpers, NSU led 39-36 with 5:55 still left to play in the third quarter.
  • The Eagles answered with a 9-0 run over the next 90 seconds, forcing a timeout from the Sharks bench after Branch had two layups within 30 seconds of each other.
  • Coming out of the timeout, Morales and Turpening traded layups before McCann knocked down her first of three three-pointers in the second half with 3:04 remaining. 
  • Branch, who had 10 points in the quarter, had yet another answer to put ERAU up 50-44, but an and-1 from Chynna Mattair cut the Eagles' lead in half with less than a minute to go.
  • The last three points of the quarter came from the charity stripe for the Blue and Gold, who led 53-51 heading into the fourth quarter. Embry-Riddle shot 28 free throws in the first three quarters, but NSU had outshot the Eagles 68-40 from the field.
Fourth Quarter
  • The Sharks scored the first six points of the period, leading 57-53 after the first 80 seconds, and they would hold on to the narrow lead for the rest of the night.
  • A stretch of Sheplee scoring or assisting on three straight possessions was matched by back-to-back threes from McCann, putting NSU's advantage at 63-61 with 6:33 remaining in regulation.
  • Both teams scored on each of their next three possessions, making the score 69-67 heading into the final 4:33.
  • With 2:08 left, Satchell made it 71-69, but a three from Taydra Simpson on the following possession pushed Nova Southeastern's lead up to five.
  • Following a steal from Turpening, Lengemann got a layup to drop with less than a minute left in the game to make it a one-possession game at 74-71. 
  • ERAU followed that up with a much-needed stop on defense, giving themselves a chance to tie the game in the final 30 seconds. Coming out of a timeout, Sheplee had a great look from behind the arc but saw the shot rim out.
  • NSU missed each of their two free throws, giving the Blue and Gold one more chance but the Sharks got another stop, which was enough for them to escape with a narrow win over the Eagles.

INSIDE THE STATS
  • Embry-Riddle has made over 20 free throws in two of their three games against NSU this season.
  • The Eagles have a 22-2 record when outrebounding their opponents this season.
  • As a team, ERAU has attempted over 70 free throws in their last three games, after averaging just 15.7 free throws per game in their first 25 games of the campaign.

UP NEXT
The Eagles will have to wait until the selection show for the NCAA Division II national tournament. Embry-Riddle is currently ranked No. 6 in the South region, with the top eight teams from each region all advancing to the tournament. The selection show is scheduled for 10:30 EST on Sunday, March 8. The link to watch the show can be found here.
 
Print Friendly Version