Syracuse, N.Y. – The Le Moyne College women's basketball team won their fourth consecutive Northeast Conference game on Friday night with a 57-44 win at home over Central Connecticut State.
The Dolphins led the Blue Devils 40-33 after three quarters. CCSU made it a one-point game with 5:37 left in the fourth, but Le Moyne responded with a 12-0 run to close out their second home NEC win.
Among the combined 18 men's and women's basketball teams in the Northeast Conference, the Le Moyne women are the only squad with a currently unblemished conference record.
The Dolphins were led in scoring by fifth-year guard
Lytoya Baker (Rochester, N.Y./Bishop Kearney) who tallied her NEC-leading sixth double-double of the season with 17 points, a season-high 15 rebounds, three assists, two steals and one block in 37 minutes played against the Blue Devils.
Sophomore guard
Sierra Linnin (Valley Cottage, N.Y./Albertus Magnus) also scored in double figures for Le Moyne with 13 points on four three-point field goals and a free throw. Linnin knocked down two timely three pointers in the final two minutes of the contest to extend the Le Moyne lead into double digits and seal the win.
Le Moyne redshirt-junior forward
Haedyn Roberts (Holland Patent, N.Y./Holland Patent) provided nine points and six rebounds off the bench, while sophomore guard
Kaia Goode (Rochester, N.Y./Bishop Kearney) recorded a team-high four assists to go along with seven points, three rebounds and two steals in 36 minutes of action.
Graduate guard
Sydney Lusher (Oneida, N.Y./Oneida) added six points, four rebounds, two steals and a block to the Le Moyne cause, while junior forward
Brianna Williams (Brampton, Ontario/Southwest Academy/Hartford) pulled down eight rebounds with two field goals, an assist, a block and a steal.
Le Moyne totaled a season-high 49 rebounds on Friday, limiting the Blue Devils to just three offensive rebounds, the lowest number of offensive rebounds that they have allowed so far this season.
Le Moyne's 17 offensive boards against CCSU is two shy of their season-best 19 offensive rebounds recorded during the game at Pittsburgh.
Friday's outing was the first time this season that the Dolphins held an opponent to under 50 points.
CCSU shot 3-18 from three-point range during the setback, and they attempted just six free throws during the 40 minutes. Le Moyne went 11-15 from the line on Friday.
CCSU sophomore guard Samora Watson, who entered the contest as the NEC's second leading scorer, produced a team-high 13 points for the Blue Devils on Friday night to go along with six rebounds and three assists in 38 minutes played.
Senior guard Belle Lanpher, who entered the game fourth in the league in scoring with 12.8 points per contest, was limited to eight points, four rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal.
Sophomore forward Alonna Sellers tallied 12 points off the bench for CCSU on an efficient 6-8 from the field to go along with four rebounds, two blocks and a steal.
Sophomore guard Ally Sentance pulled down a team-high seven rebounds for the Blue Devils with three assists, two blocks and a steal.
Junior guard Amaya Williams, a graduate of Nottingham High School in Syracuse, logged 20 minutes for the Blue Devils on Friday.
CCSU drops to 2-2 in NEC play following the setback, while the Dolphins remain in first place with a 4-0 conference record.
Dating back to the 2022-23 season, the Dolphins have won 15 straight regular season conference games. Le Moyne is shooting 42% (33-80) from three-point range over its last five games.
Postgame Comments From Le Moyne Head Coach Mary Grimes:
Postgame comments from guards Lytoya Baker, Sierra Linnin, and Kaia Goode:
Game Highlights:
How It Happened:
The Dolphins won the tip and scored on the game's first possession, as Linnin used a screen set by Lusher, accepted a pass from Goode on the left wing and drilled a deep three pointer.
A driving layup from Baker at the 9:16 mark and a Lusher pull up jumper from the free-throw line one minute later sandwiched a basket from Watson, giving the Dolphins a 7-2 lead.
Sentance rattled home a three pointer from the right side with 7:45 left in the first, then Sellers scored a contested layup in the paint at the 5:41 mark to tie the game.
With just under five minutes remaining in the first period, Baker caught the ball at the top of the key, drove to her left, drew in an extra defender then sent a pass to the left corner for Linnin who made her second long-distance attempt of the contest to put the 'Phins back in front.
Lanpher drove into the paint and converted a floater over multiple defenders to tie the game at 11-11 with just over a minute left in the first, then she drove to the left block and scored a layup just before the first quarter clock expired to put the Blue Devils up 13-11 after 10 minutes of action.
Baker scored Le Moyne's first six points of the second period. She made two free throws after drawing a foul on a fast break. At the 8:35 mark she caught the ball at the top of the key, crossed over to her right, beat her defender to the right block and converted the layup to give the 'Phins a 15-13 lead, then following a two-minute and 31-second scoring drought for both teams, Baker caught a pass at the right block from Goode off a baseline out of bounds play, was blocked from behind on her first layup attempt, but grabbed the offensive rebound and converted the putback to make it a two-possession game.
CCSU answered right back at the other end with a nice move and score in the paint by Sellers, but Roberts swished a triple from straight on at the other end to make it 20-15 in favor of the Dolphins.
Sellers made another tough shot in the paint during the next CCSU possession to trim the deficit back to three.
With 1:20 left in the first half, Williams caught a pass from Goode near the right elbow, then quickly made a move past her defender and scored a layup at the right block to put Le Moyne in front, 25-24, but Meghan Kenefick swished a three pointer from the left wing during the next CCSU possession to give the Blue Devils a two-point lead.
A Williams offensive rebound with 30 seconds left in the first led to Goode drawing a foul on the perimeter and sinking both free throws to tie the game at 27-27 going into halftime.
With 7:45 left in the third, Baker caught a pass on the left block, dribbled towards the middle of the paint, pivoted through a double team, converted a layup through contact, drew a foul and made the additional free to give the Dolphins a 34-29 advantage.
A Roberts midrange jumper at the 1:33 mark followed by a contested Lusher pull up with 52 seconds left in the third extended Le Moyne's lead to 40-33 going into the final period.
Following a layup by Sellers during Central Connecticut's first possession of the fourth period, Le Moyne answered right back at the other end due to a second-chance opportunity created by Baker.
With 9:21 on the clock, Baker grabbed a contested offensive rebound following a Le Moyne missed three pointer. After passing the ball out to the perimeter, Baker got the ball back at the top of the key, then fired a pass to the left wing for Goode who drained the three pointer to put the 'Phins up by eight.
Watson got the Blue Devils right back in the game with a personal 7-0 run. She made two free throws at the 8:42 mark, then drilled a three-point field goal with 6:27 on the clock, then converted a jumper in the paint less than a minute later to make it a one-point game.
Roberts ended the run by making a nice move in the paint, collecting the offensive rebound on her initial missed layup attempt and converting the putback.
Roberts layup began a 12-0 run for the 'Phins that put the game away. At the 3:10 mark of the fourth, Baker caught the ball at the free-throw line, drove to the left block then spun back to her right and banked home a contested fall away shot to make it a five-point game.
Le Moyne got a stop at the other end, and Roberts pushed the lead to 49-42 during the next possession by posting up in the paint, catching a bounce pass from Baker, turning toward her left shoulder and finishing a heavily contest layup at the right block.
With 1:45 left on the clock, Baker took a dribble to the left elbow then kicked a pass out to the left wing for Linnin who swished a deep three-pointer to put the Dolphins up by 10.
Linnin delivered a dagger during the next Le Moyne possession. Lusher sent a pass to a wide open Linnin in the left corner, bringing the entire Le Moyne bench to their feet as she let the shot fly towards the rim. Linnin's fourth three pointer of the contest rattled home, completing a 12-0 Le Moyne run, and giving the Dolphins a 55-42 advantage.
The Le Moyne women's basketball team will return to action on Sunday, with a 2:00 p.m. game at Saint Francis University.
