The Guru Report: D2 Chestnut Hill Sets Records and Advances With USciences and Jefferson

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

PHILADELPHIA — Things that once were casual dreams Tuesday night to Chestnut Hill College players became  reality as a jammed Sorgenti Arena saw them continue their magical year with a first-ever quarterfinal win as the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) playoffs got under way.

Across the board there was nearly a Southern Division sweep as USciences in its last ever home game advanced as did Jefferson U. While only Post from the North joined the trio.

There was enough to entertain here with records falling though Caldwell University refused to be subdued, continuously rallying every time the game might get out of reach until the Griffins put a lid on the opposition down the stretch and moved to the weekend semifinals at Caldwell with an 82-66 victory and increased their best ever record to 24-5.

Though Caldwell is the weekend host Saturday and Sunday they will be in the stands with a completed 13-15 record.

Lauren Crim gave an encore performance from the perimeter tying her school record with with eight shots from beyond the arc and finished with 26 points, shooting 8-for-12 overall and the eight shots that went down were off 10 attempts from deep.

Cassie Sebold dished out 11 assists to snap the single season mark with 151, just two more than the previous 149 that Mary Trossi set in in 2016-17. Emily Chmiel, who won the CACC rookie award announced Monday, had a Griffins’ season record 12 double doubles, the most recent one off 16 points and 11 rebounds.

Bri Hewlett was just short of a double double wtih 22 points off 9-for-15 from the field and nine rebounds.

Though the game was close at various stages and reduced to a one-point lead in the third period, Chestnut Hill never trailed, and were tied once at the outset 2-2.

Assists of five of the field goals came from Cassie Sebold on a 19-4 run, connecting on 7 of 9 field goals on the burst in the first quarter that was over with a 28-17 finish out of an earlier 26-11 advantage.

The Griffns maintained the first half control heading to the break ahead 28-17. 

The Cougars began to strike back in the third and moved within a point deficit 45-44 off an opening 10-3 run  before an 11-4 answer saw Chestnut Hill ahead 60-50 with ten minutes left in the game.

The Griffins would go on to explode to a 16-point lead and keep it there as time expired.

Next up is an attempt to increase the season to a three-game sweep of Jefferson which would send Chestnut Hill to its first championship encounter.

The Rams advanced to the 5 p.m. match with Chestnut Hill winning over Felician, the second seed in the North on the road 62-34 at Rutherford, N.J. to improve to 22-7. The Griffins are the top seed in the South.

Holy Meinel had 14 points, shooting 6-for-12, while Sam Yencha had 12 points, and Morgan Robinson scored 11.

Meanwhile, Jefferson trailed 2-1 early and then went on an 11-1 run but the Golden Falcolns struck back with a spurt though the Rams got to the half with a 28-20 lead.

In the third they built the advantage to 19 and kept going.

Defensively, Jefferson forced 28 turnovers on the way to the Rams’ fourth straight semifinals appearance.

Down in Southwest Philadelphia it was bittersweet with USciences doing what the Devils’ have done a lot — get to the semifinals on a 58-40 win over Dominican at Bobby Morgan Arena but in the process the move to their fifth straight appearance was also their last appearance ever at home — the school at the end of the semester will be merging with Division I Saint Joseph’s.

Jess Huber, who was named the player of the year in the CACC, scored 26 points for the Devils with 26 points as USciences heads to meet Post, the top seed in the North at 7 p.m. on Saturday.

Isla Brennan scored 11 for the Devils and Taylor Hamm scored 10 and dealt five assists.

Youth Cited by A-10 on Saint Joseph’s and La Salle Also Honored: After dominating the weekly freshman awards in the Atlantic 10 for the last several months, in advance of the conference tournament starting Wednesday though the Hawks don’t play till Thursday their Talya Brugler was named freshman of the year and was joined on the all-freshmen team by Laila Fair, Julia Nystrom, and Mackenzie Smith.

Brugler’s honor was the third ever from Saint Joseph’s, previously getting Hillary Klimowicz (2006) and Susan Lavin (1999) so named and the foursome were the most ever from any school in a given year.

The last multi-frosh selections occurred in 2006 with Klimowicz and Jen Oyler.

La Salle senior Kayla Spruill was named to the all-conference squad, just the fifth Explorer to make the first team in league history, and first under Mountain MacGillivray.

In the Big Ten, which gets under way Wednesday with Rutgers and Penn State meeting each other in Indianapolis, Makenna Marisa made the all-conference squad, while Rutgers’ Osh Brown made honorable mention.

Iowa sensation Caitlin Clark was named player of the year.

On the Court: After a tough 65-61 loss at SMU in Dallas in overtime Monday, Temple plays the Mustangs again in Dixie Wednesday night to finish the regular season, one of the two being a makeup game that was postponed in Philadelphia in the American Athletic Conference.

The Owls at the moment are fighting to avoid playing in Monday’s opener in Fort Worth.

Seton Hall defeated Xavier in a makeup in Cincinnati for the last Big East game, giving Pirates coach Tony Bozella his 350th victory, relegating the Musketeers to the 10th seed facing St. John’s Friday in the Big East opener at Mohegan in Uncasville, Conn. The winner meets Villanova in a quarterfinal Saturday night at 7 p.m.

Wrapping up the regular season Big 12 No. 19 Oklahoma is at Oklahoma State, while No. 9 Texas is at Kansas — those being ranking numbers in this week’s Associated Press women’s poll.

Conference tournament play in Division I began Tuesday with Presbyterian edging Withrop 65-60, while High Point cruised over Charleston Southern 54-34; Hampton beat Radford 55-49, and North Carolina A&T beat UNC Ashville 59-68 in the Big South; Over in the Horizon League: Oakland beat Wright State, 54-45;Northern Kentucky beat Detroit Mercy 73-50; Robert Morris beat Purdue FW 70-56; and Illinois Chicago fell to Milwaukee 55-45.

And that’s the report.