Lawrence leads Panthers with 21 points in victory

            CONCORD, N.H. – Senior DeAsia 'Ace' Lawrence (Middletown, Conn.) dropped a game-high 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting to lead the Plymouth State University women's basketball team to a 71-61 win over Rivier University in the season-opener for both teams.  The in-state battle was the opening game of the Boys & Girls Club Classic, hosted by New Hampshire Technical Institute.

            The Panthers pulled away in the first half thanks to a big second quarter.  PSU outscored the Raiders 22-12 in the frame to take a 37-23 lead into the intermission. 

THE BASICS

  Dr. Goldie Crocker Wellness Center, NHTI, Concord, N.H. – Tues., Nov. 15, 2016

  Plymouth State 71, Rivier 61

  Records:

  Plymouth State 1-0; Rivier 0-1

PSU LEADERS

  * Lawrence … 21 points (8-of-13), 3-of-6 from three-point range, three assists, two steals

  * Sophomore Kailyn Aguiar (Acushnet, Mass.) … nine points (4-of-5)

  * Sophomore Cassidy Emerson (Concord, N.H.) … eight points (4-of-6), two rebounds

  * Senior Savannah Miller (Smithtown, N.Y.) … team-highs of six rebounds and five assists

  * Senior Kayla Wyland (Melrose, Mass.) … seven points, four rebounds

BY THE NUMBERS

  * Plymouth State shot an even 50% from the floor (27-of-54), and 40% (4-of-10) from long range.

  * The PSU defense forced 15 Rivier turnovers, which led to 19 Panther points.

  * The Panthers were strong down low, outscoring the Raiders 30-14 in the paint.

  * PSU relied on its depth, as its bench outscored Rivier's 32-10.

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Quarter:

  * Wyland and Lawrence combined for the first seven Panther points of the season, putting PSU ahead 7-2 over the first 3:24 of the game.

  * After a three from Rivier senior Savanna Butterfield (Londonderry, N.H.), Emerson scored six straight points to put the Panthers up 13-4.

  * A jumper by Miller put Plymouth State up 15-6 with 3:59 remaining in the opening period. 

  * The Rivier defense tightened up, holding PSU scoreless for the remainder of the period and a triple from senior Rebecca DeBaldo (Pelham, N.H.) cut the Rivier margin to 15-11 after one.

Second Quarter:

  * Wyland and freshman Chenysse Hill (Lynn, Mass.) opened the scoring in the second quarter with a pair of layups to put PSU up 19-11.

  * Lawrence and Hill connected from close range to push the margin to double digits, 29-18, with 3:35 left in the opening half.

  * Two three-pointers from Lawrence and a pair of free throws from sophomore Debra Morrill (Concord, N.H.) put the Panthers up 15, 37-22, in the closing minute of the half.

  * A free throw from Rivier senior Caitlin Bulger (Quincy, Mass.) made the score 37-23 at the half.

Third Quarter:

  * PSU's offense continued to roll in the third quarter.  Aguiar scored seven straight points for the Panthers, pushing the lead to 21, 53-32, with just under 3:00 left in the quarter.

  * Rivier closed the quarter on a mini 7-3 run, with PSU's only points coming on a triple from senior Leah Swanson (Atkinson, N.H.), to trail 56-39 entering the final frame.

Fourth Quarter:

  * The Panthers held a 20-point lead for most of the fourth quarter.  A pair of free throws from senior Annaliese Schmidt (Newmarket, N.H.) made it 64-44 with 5:15 to play.

  * Rivier responded with eight-straight points to cut the lead to 64-52 with 2:28 to play, but the Panthers were solid from the free throw line, pushing the margin back to 17, 69-52, with under a minute remaining.

  * Rivier connected on a trio of three-pointers in the final 48 seconds to make the final margin 71-61.

NEXT UP

  Plymouth State @ Castleton University, Castleton, Vt. – Tues., Nov. 22 (5:30 p.m.)

  Rivier vs. Coast Guard, Dartmouth, Mass. – Fri., Nov. 18 (2:00 p.m.)

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