PETERSBURG, Virginia — The University of Maine at Augusta is moving on in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association Division II Women’s Small College Basketball national tournament.
The No. 7 Moose edged No. 10 Central Penn 94-84 in two overtimes in their first-round game Monday at Richard Bland College. UMA (22-7) will meet No. 2 University of Cincinnati-Clermont in the second round at 2 p.m., Tuesday.
Central Penn (16-10) will meet No. 9 Christendom in a consolation-round matchup at 8 a.m., Tuesday at Virginia State University in Petersburg.
Freshman guard Alisyn Alley led the Moose with 31 points. Skowhegan Area High School graduate Mariah Dunbar scored 17 points for UMA, while Monmouth Academy alum Kaeti Butterfield added 14 points.
“We’re so excited (to win),” Alley said. “The clock was still running and we were already jumping up and down. I can’t tell you how happy I am for my team.”
“During the game, it was a little stressful,” UMA head coach Heath Cowan said. “It was a really good game, back and forth between two pretty evenly-matched teams. Obviously 7-10 (seeds), it usually is, right? I really thought the key was, our kids really just stuck together.”
Carrying a healthy roster of just eight players, the Moose managed to beat the Knights with five eligible players remaining after foul trouble. Butterfield, guard Tamara Ellis and guard/forward Hailey Paquet all fouled out by the second overtime. Cowan credited Ellis, freshman forward Briana Dumais and sophomore forward Ariana Alcide for playing key minutes off the bench for UMA.
“Ariana Alcide probably played more minutes today than she ever has, consecutively,” Cowan said. “The second overtime is when (Dumais) first touches the floor, and she defended, she didn’t just stand there. She did some things, made a huge free throw that really got us into overtime. And Tamara, our Texas connection, she became a Moose today. She made some big shots and played some great defense.”
Down by seven in the third quarter, the Moose managed to tie the game 48-48 heading in the fourth. From there, it was a slugfest between the Moose and Knights, tying the game 66-66 after four quarters, and 77-77 after the first overtime.
“We were frustrated (being down to five players), but we worked in practice playing all kinds of different positions, so we’re pretty prepared when that stuff kind of happens,” Alley said.
Despite being short-handed, the Moose outscored the Knights 17-7 in the second overtime to take the win.
“We did an awesome job, pushing each other through the ups and downs of this game and pulling out the win,” Dunbar said.
Ellis and fellow guard Sydney Farrar each contributed with 10 points for UMA.
Sidney Green and Cayla Thomas each scored 23 points for Central Penn, while Tahniyaah Jackson added 13 points.
“I think it was a great matchup,” Dunbar said. “(Central Penn) is a great basketball team. They shoot the ball well. They can do it all. They had some big girls that caused us some trouble in the paint, but I think we did pretty good handling it all.”
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