SPRINGFIELD, MA – Casey Miller (Fairbanks,
AK) tallied a career-high 23 points, while Amanda
Shannon (North Andover, MA) converted tying shots at the
buzzer in regulation and the first overtime and won the game with a
jumper in double overtime with five seconds remaining as Merrimack
notched its first conference win Saturday, 85-84 over American
International.
The Warriors trailed by as much as 11 and were down 10 with 5:17
remaining in regulation but finished the second half on a 17-7 run
to force sudden death. They trailed by six with 33 seconds to play,
but Miller drained a three and Shannon hit a layup to cut the lead
to one. After AIC extended the lead to three behind two free throws
from Stacy Boisvert, Shannon hit a three-pointer as time expired to
send the game to overtime.
In the first overtime, the Yellow Jackets led by three in the final
moments, but again Shannon came up big, sinking a three with 10
seconds to play to tie the score at 74. AIC regained the lead
behind two free throws from Jeanette Jonathan, but Shannon answered
the challenge with a basket of her own with two seconds to play,
forcing a second overtime.
Merrimack led for most of the second overtime but Jen Moussette hit
a three-pointer with 21 seconds remaining giving the hosts the
84-83 lead. Following a timeout, Shannon finally put the Yellow
Jackets away for good with a jumper with five ticks remaining.
Trailing by one, AIC’s Kristin Boesenberg missed a
desperation three-pointer as time expired, and the Warriors walked
away with the thrilling win.
Shannon finished with 27 points (12-of-29 from the field) and added
seven rebounds in a game-high 50 minutes. Miller made five
three-pointers en route to a 23 point performance. Hannah
DeGraffinreed (Raleigh, NC) posted her third double-double
on 12 points and 10 boards while adding two blocks and two steals.
Tiffany Colon (Lawrence, MA) was the fourth
Warrior in double-digits as she tallied 11 points and seven
rebounds.
The Yellow Jackets, who entered Saturday’s game 4-1 in the
Northeast-10, received 27 points and 11 rebounds from Boisvert.
The Warriors (2-5, 1-3 NE-10) will visit sixth-ranked Franklin
Pierce on December 22 at 1 p.m.