PAXTON, Mass. – The Albertus Magnus College women's basketball team brought an end to the 2019-20 regular season by topping Anna Maria College, 69-50, in road Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) action on Saturday afternoon. The Falcons head into the GNAC Tournament with an 18-7 overall record and an 8-3 mark in conference.
THE BASICS
FINAL: Albertus Magnus 69 | Anna Maria 50
RECORDS: Albertus Magnus (18-7, 8-3 GNAC) | Anna Maria (6-19, 2-9 GNAC)
BOX SCORE
HOW IT HAPPENED
After trailing by a 10-4 margin 5:42 into today's game, Albertus caught fire with a 21-1 run that spanned the end of the first and start of the second quarter. Shyla Osmond (New Haven, Conn.) scored five of the Falcons' first nine points in the second quarter to give Albertus a 25-11 advantage 6:31 into the period.
The Falcons built their lead to as high as 17 points, 30-13, before the end of the half, before ultimately settling at a 35-20 advantage at the break. Cassie Couture (Waterbury, Conn.) was fantastic in the second quarter, scoring eight points on a pair of 3-pointers. Couture only trailed Rah-Rah Thompson (Bridgeport, Conn.) with 11 points and Osmond with nine points for the first-half lead.
The third and fourth quarter featured much of the same for the Falcons, as they held the AMCATS to sub-35% shooting for both frames. On the offensive end of the court, Thompson led Albertus in the half with 17 points, 13 in the fourth. She also tallied 13 rebounds in the second half.
For the game, Thompson paced all players with 28 points and 16 rebounds. Thompson's double-double is her 19th of the season, which ranks in the top three in all of Division III. Osmond also posted a double-double with 18 points and 10 boards. She ended the day two assists shy of her fourth triple-double this year. Couture also finished in double figures with 13 points and three treys.
TEAM STATS
Albertus – 37.5% FG | 27.3%3PT| 52.9%FT
Anna Maria – 29.9% FG | 24%3PT| 44.4%FT
KEY PERFORMERS
Albertus:
Rah-Rah Thompson - 28 points (11-19 FG, 6-8 FT) | 16 rebounds | 1 assist | 2 steals | 2 blocks
Shyla Osmond - 18 points (7-18 FG, 2-5 3PT, 2-6 FT) | 10 rebounds | 8 assists | 3 steals | 1 block
Cassie Couture - 13 points (5-11 FG, 3-8 3PT) | 1 rebound | 1 assist
Anna Maria:
Hailey Vergara - 18 points (6-18 FG, 5-11 3PT, 1-5 FT) | 3 rebounds | 1 assist | 1 steal
Franchesca Hammond - 13 points (6-10 FG, 1-3 3PT) | 8 rebounds | 5 assists | 1 steal
Sierra Johnson - 11 points (4-15 FG, 3-4 FT) | 7 rebounds | 2 assists | 2 steals
DOUBLES-DOUBLES
Albertus:
Rah-Rah Thompson - 28 points & 16 rebounds
Shyla Osmond - 18 points & 10 rebounds
NOTEWORTHY
• Tonight was the 17th all-time meeting between Albertus and Anna Maria.
• Albertus leads the all-time series by a 13-4 margin.
• The Falcons have won the last five contests against the AMCATS.
• Albertus is 9-4 on the road this year.
• Thompson sits top three in the country with 19 double-doubles.
• Thompson has tallied 16-plus boards a whopping 11 times this season.
• Osmond is second on the team with 12 double-doubles.
• Osmond has scored in double figures in all but one game this year.
UP NEXT
The Falcons earn the fifth-seed in the upcoming GNAC Championship Tournament and will face fourth-seeded Suffolk University on Tuesday, February 25 in Boston, Mass. Tip-off is set for 7PM.
Quarterfinals - Tuesday, February 25 (at high seeds)
Game 1: #8 Norwich at #1 Emmanuel - 7:30 PM
Game 2: #5 Albertus Magnus at #4 Suffolk - 7:00 PM
Game 3: #6 Colby-Sawyer at #3 Regis - 6:00 PM
Game 4: #7 JWU at #2 Saint Joseph's Maine - 7:00 PM
Semifinals - Thursday, February 27 (at high seeds)
Game 5: #4/5 winner vs. #1/8 winner
Game 6: #3/6 winner vs. #2/7 winner
Championship - Saturday, February 29 (at highest remaining seed)
Game 7: At highest remaining seed
