Box Score
By
EMILY LOOF
Saint Mary's Sports Information Office
ROCHESTER, Minn. — It was a clash of the best defense versus the best offense in NCAA Division III women’s basketball when Amherst squared off against Bowdoin for the national championship Saturday evening at Mayo Civic Center.
And in the end, defense prevailed, as the defending national champions Mammoths defeated the Polar Bears 65-45 for their third national title in program history.
“It’s an unbelievable feeling to end my basketball career with back-to-back national championships,” said Amherst senior Hannah Hackley (Westford, Mass.). “It’s a privilege to end it like this.”
Heading into Saturday’s game, Bowdoin was the only team in the Division III tournament to post all of its 29 wins by double figures—defeating opponents by an average of 28.5 points, easily the most prolific offense in the tournament.
On the flip side, the Mammoths had the best defense in the tournament, riding a 64-game winning streak that dates to the national semifinals of the 2015-16 season.
“It didn’t go our way today, but I’m super proud of what these ladies did,” said Bowdoin head coach Nancy Shibles, whose squad closed out the season with a 29-3 record—with two of those three setbacks coming at the hands of the Mammoths. “It will be a defining moment in my life for sure.”
This is the second consecutive year two schools from the New England Small Colleges Athletic Conference met in the national championship game—last year, it was the Mammoths beating perennial rival Tufts for the victory.
Bowdoin’s Cordelia Stewart (Bangor, Maine) had the first basket of the game after several scoreless possessions by both teams. Stewart would also have the Bears’ second basket, putting her team ahead 4-0. Amherst, meanwhile, did not get on the board until 5:34 minutes into the first quarter, after going 0-for-5 from the field.
That first basket, however, was from Amherst standout Emma McCarthy (Shelton, Conn.)—who made another drive to the basket shortly after to tie the game at 4-4.
And McCarthy was just getting warmed up.
The junior went on an eight-point run, putting her team ahead 8-4—and taking over the game offensively. After their hot start, the Polar Bears went just 4-for-21 from the field, but managed to keep the game tied at 8-8 at the end of the first 10 minutes.
Bowdoin’s Lauren Petit (Medfield, Mass.) opened the second quarter by draining a 3-pointer, but Amherst’s other leading scorer, Madeline Eck (Rye, N.Y), contributed two baskets of her own to keep the Mammoths ahead 12-11—and both teams’ offenses seemed to finally un-thaw, exchanging baskets on both ends of the court.
Unfortunately for the Polar Bears, the baskets made on their end were 3-pointers, and the Mammoths began to pull away, securing a 20-13 second-quarter lead. But the Polar Bears’ stars came to play, too, as Abby Kelly (Bombay, N.Y.) and Taylor Choate (Nashua, N.H.) drained a pair of free throws each and Petit buried another 3-pointer to draw the Polar Bears back within one.
But thanks to another basket and a solo free throw in the quarter’s final minutes, the Mammoths maintained their lead and headed into the locker rooms for halftime ahead three, 26-23.
It was all Polar Bears to start the third quarter, as Choate drained a basket and a free throw to tie the game once more, 26-26. Kerrigan added a basket to give the Polar Bears their first lead since their 4-0 lead to begin the game.
But it didn’t last long, as McCarthy tied it up once more seconds later. Then Bowdoin’s Lydia Caputi (Brunswick, Maine) buried both of her attempts behind the penalty stripe to again give the Polar Bears the lead.
The balancing act continued, as the teams would go on to tie the score three more times—four total—in the third quarter. But it was again the Mammoths who would win the battle, entering the game’s final 10 minutes ahead 42-36.
And that turned out to be the game’s final lead change.
The experienced Mammoths kept their heads for the entirety of the fourth quarter, gaining an early 13-point lead thanks in part to a five-point run by McCarthy.
That lead would only grow, as the Mammoths kept the Polar Bears off the board for over nine minutes of play, all while going on a 20-point run and going 8-13 from the field. That lead was enough to secure the Mammoths their second national championship in as many seasons.
“To be in front of you right now with a national championship, it’s an unbelievable feeling,” said Amherst head coach G.P. Gromacki. “It’s a special group, the most resilient team I’ve ever coached.”
Amherst finished a perfect 33-0 season with the win, while Bowdoin finished 30-3.
McCarthy, who was named Outstanding Player of the Tournament, finished with a staggering 25 points, while Hannah Fox (Plymouth Meeting, Pa.) had 12 and Eck added eight.
Petit led the Polar Bears with 12 points. Choate finished with nine.
“Enjoy every moment,” said a teary-eyed Kate Kerrigan of Bowdoin when asked about what advice she would give to girls looking up to her and her teammates. “Play with people you love. Play because you love it. It’s an unbelievable game. I’m gonna miss it.”
